


Death of Stars

by Chrysalin



Series: Time Travel Trouble [6]
Category: Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon | Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon, Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon | Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Betrayal, Canonical Character Death, F/F, F/M, Multi, Temporary Character Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-27
Updated: 2019-06-26
Packaged: 2020-05-20 11:34:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 52,380
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19375891
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chrysalin/pseuds/Chrysalin
Summary: After months of peace, their world is shattered when Mamoru mysteriously dies and even the Silver Crystal can't bring him back. Soon everyone is under attack, and there seems to be nothing they can do to stop it.





	1. Part 1

**Author's Note:**

> I'm copying my old works over from Fanfiction.

Usagi laughed helplessly as she spun into her boyfriend hard enough to send both of them skidding backwards, skates seeking purchase in the shining ice and leaving glittering trails behind. Mamoru smiled down at her as they came to a stop.

 

“You’re still a klutz, Odango.”

 

“Only if you’re there to catch me,” the blonde said with a teasing grin.

 

“Does that mean you’ll actually be graceful while I’m gone? I should get one of the girls to take pictures for me,” he joked.

 

He wasn’t serious, but his words were sobering nonetheless. Mamoru had been accepted into a study abroad program at Harvard through Keio University; he wouldn’t be back until June at the earliest. His plane left first thing in the morning.

 

“Hey.” She looked up at him, startled. “We’re here to have fun before I go, remember?”

 

Laughter behind them drew their attention. Minako was trying to coax her boyfriend into pair skating as Makoto and Masato slid by, perfectly in sync. Ami and Zane were on a bench behind the partition, sipping hot chocolate. They’d tried joining in, but it wasn’t something Zane particularly enjoyed and Ami elected to stay with him. Rei and Jomei had skates on, but they were having one of their endless arguments instead of using them. Usagi and Mamoru were together, of course, but she kept alternating between princess-like grace and being completely incapable of keeping her feet under her. They would both have bruises in a few hours, but they were having too much fun to care.

 

As a treat before Mamoru left, Keiji had rented a skating rink for the day and arranged a private party for the ten of them. Haruka and the others had been invited, but they’d declined. 

 

“Mina, this is not one of your better ideas,” Keiji maintained as he finally gave in to her masterfully rendered pleas and giant blue eyes brimming with insincere tears. 

 

“Usagi-chan and Mamoru-san are doing it.”

 

“Mamoru-sama is far more accustomed to catching his partner than I.” He didn’t bother adding that Minako wasn’t capable of even occasional grace when it came to skating. Athletic though she was, she and the ice weren’t friends.

 

Minako finally got him moving, and the others stopped to see how it went. Keiji’s frown deepened as he carefully slid forward. Makoto decided he was perfectly capable, but too stiff to really be good. Jomei laughed and was about to say something stupid, so Masato threw an empty cup at him before he managed to make their leader angry. He was far more reasonable than the blond, and he didn’t want to be woken up before dawn for a twenty kilometer run or something equally unpleasant. Jomei toned it down to a snicker. 

 

Glad their friends were enjoying themselves, Usagi turned back to her boyfriend. “I’m going to miss you, Mamo-chan.”

 

“I know.” He studied her, worried. “I could stay if it really bothers you.”

 

“You shouldn’t have to give up your dreams,” she said. “It’s been months since the Dead Moon Circus; we’re at peace. Take the chance while you have it.”

 

“What if something happens? I wouldn’t be here to protect you.”

 

“You’re acting like an attack is already happening. We’ll be fine.”

 

He knew she didn’t want to discuss it, so he twirled her out before pulling her against him again. He nodded at the leaders of their respective guards, a wicked glint in his eye. “What do you say we show them how it’s supposed to be done?”

 

She giggled, sliding back to arm’s length. He gave her a courtly bow; she swept an elegant curtsey that shouldn’t have been possible in a skating outfit – not to mention the skates themselves. They moved into a perfectly matched routine from days long gone.

 

Makoto wolf-whistled as she sped by.

 

88888888

 

The party had been the others’ goodbyes, so Usagi was the only one with Mamoru in the airport early that morning. Chibiusa had gone home after Nehelenia and Motoki was busy – who else did he have to see him off? It was barely past dawn, which meant the terminal was all but empty. The couple sat in the spacious waiting area, fingers twined. Usagi worried that if she said anything she’d crack. Despite encouraging him, she knew it would be hard while he was gone. 

 

When his flight was called, they got to their feet, but Usagi lingered. “I wish you’d let the guys go too. They offered, and they’re your guardians. They should be with you.”

 

“They have their own lives, and I’d rather have them here. Trouble follows you, Usako,” he said with a gentle smile. 

 

She managed a quick laugh, but her expression turned serious again a second later. “I just have a bad feeling about all of this.”

 

He looked around. “You haven’t had a vision, have you? Is something going to happen?”

 

Usagi shook her head. “No, it’s just… a feeling. I mean, we haven’t been apart for more than a week since we met if you ignore the Dark Kingdom. I’m not used to it.”

 

“I’ll think of you all the time,” he swore. “I wouldn’t go if you asked me.”

 

“I’d never do that.” Tears slipped down her cheeks. She brushed at them futilely. “I’m sorry; I promised myself I’d see you off with a smile.”

 

“It doesn’t matter,” Mamoru assured her. “I’ll stay in contact as much as I can.”

 

_ We always have this, _ she said silently. 

 

_ All the time if it’ll make you smile. _

 

It did, but she shook her head. “You’ll be busy. If you want to talk, though, you know I’m only a thought away.”

 

“I know.” He brushed the last lingering droplets from her face with a gentle touch before reaching in his pocket and offering her a small velvet box. “Here.”

 

The blonde took the little case and lifted the top with a hint of trepidation. An opaque pink heart-shaped gem shone in the center of a ring of smaller crystals – diamonds, she thought – set in a slim gold band. She stared at the gift in awe as Mamoru set down his suitcase and took it, slipping it onto the ring finger of her left hand. 

 

“I – it’s beautiful.”

 

“It’s a promise ring. When I come back we can start to think about our future.” He looked straight into her eyes. “After this I don’t want to leave you ever again. I love you, Usako.”

 

“Oh, Mamo-chan,” she breathed. “I love you too.”

 

He kissed her. All he could think was that it’d be six months before he saw her again, without her smile and laugh. She wasn’t the only one nervous about the separation, but he agreed that it was too valuable an opportunity to pass up. They broke apart as his flight was called again, and he managed a dry laugh at the startled look on her face. “Time to go.”

 

“Yeah…” she said softly. It took her a second, but she managed to get her smile back in place. “Goodbye, Mamo-chan. I’ll be waiting for you when you come home.”

 

There was so much else to say, but he couldn’t. She already knew. “Goodbye, Usako.”

 

He picked up his bag and walked away, each step like a mile. Another man brushed by as he handed over his boarding pass, fighting the urge to look back. If he saw her crying again he’d stay, no matter how amazing a chance the trip was. There would be time for everything else later. 

 

88888888

 

She watched, making sure her smile didn’t crack until he was gone. The tears slipped past her guard once he was, and she sat down abruptly in the hard plastic seat. She tried to tell herself it was just six months; it wasn’t like she’d lost him to an enemy again. It was only for school. 

 

“Hey, miss, are you okay?”

 

Usagi’s gaze shot up as she quashed the urge to jump. Seeing a concerned young man looking down at her, she forced a weak grin. “Yeah, I’m fine. Thanks for asking.”

 

He offered her a handkerchief. “Seeing someone off?”

 

“My boyfriend,” she replied distantly, dabbing at the corners of her eyes before returning the cloth square to its owner. “He’s going to study abroad for a semester.”

 

“That’s always tough. I haven’t seen my friend in more than a year.”

 

She glanced up at him again. “That’s horrible. Where is he?”

 

“She.” He shrugged before offering her a hand up. She took it, her smile a little more real after the gentlemanly gesture. “I don’t know. We got separated; I’ve been looking for her since.”

 

“I hope you find her,” Usagi told him honestly. 

 

“Me too.” He smiled and held out his hand again, this time to shake. “Seiya Kou. I thought you would’ve recognized me already, but since you didn’t, I should introduce myself.”

 

“Do I know you?”

 

“You’re hard on a guy’s ego, Odango.”

 

“Don’t call me that,” she said automatically before shaking his hand. “Tsukino Usagi.”

 

“Nice to meet you, but I think I prefer ‘Odango’. It suits you.”

 

Usagi shook her head, exasperated. “You wouldn’t be the first person to think so. Is there anything I can say to make you stop?”

 

“Hmm… Probably not. Sorry.”

 

“You’re not sorry at all.” She sighed through the beginnings of a laugh. After a moment she let it out. “Thanks for making me feel better. I hope you find your friend soon.”

 

She walked away instead of waiting for a reply, knowing the rest of their group would be at Crown (except Keiji, but he  _ was _ a busy CEO) for one of their last days of break. After all, the girls were in high school and Zane was at Tokyo University. Masato was finishing his astronomy degree at Keio. She wasn’t sure what Jomei was celebrating, but the more the merrier. 

 

88888888

 

Her trip across town was quiet; her arrival at the café was anything but. Minako took one look at her and let out an ecstatic shriek, practically pouncing on her princess, and a clamor rose from the others a second later. It took a few minutes to make out what anyone said, but Usagi eventually realized they’d seen her ring. After a quick intervention by Unazuki, they piled into their booth. Usagi was the last one to sit down, but as she did they fixed her in their sights.

 

“Is that what I think it is?” Minako demanded. “Usagi-chan, did Mamoru-san propose?!”

 

“What? Mina-chan, I’m only sixteen!”

 

“It’s legal if your parents approve,” Ami told her. 

 

Usagi blinked. “Really?” She shook her head to clear her momentary distraction. “No, he didn’t ask me to marry him. It’s a promise ring. He said we’d talk more when he comes home.”

 

Rei, Makoto, and Minako all sighed dreamily as the guys shot them wary looks. “It’s so romantic,” Makoto said in what could best be described as a croon. 

 

“Mamoru-san’s just perfect, isn’t he?” Rei asked. 

 

“You’re being weird,” Jomei told her jealously, remembering that she’d been interested in Mamoru before he and Usagi were a thing. She impatiently shushed him. 

 

“Won’t it be hard on you?” Ami asked. “Trying to maintain a long distance relationship is difficult, and you must miss him.”

 

Usagi’s face fell. “Yeah. I’m really glad he has a chance to do something like this, but knowing I won’t see him for so long is tough.”

 

“Oh, Usagi,” Rei said softly, pushing her atypically girly reaction aside. “We’ll be here for you; you know that.”

 

If her smile seemed less than genuine, no one commented. They fell into a discussion of what to do with the remaining freedom before classes and homework took over their lives again. 

 

88888888

 

Mamoru ran his thumb over her face, smiling. For whatever reason, he hadn’t told Usagi he was taking their family photos with him. Most were in the luggage he’d sent ahead, but he’d kept her favorite in his carry-on. Usagi and Chibiusa beamed out at him. He was there too, but it was nothing next to them. Sure, he had the generals and Motoki, but his girls mattered most. 

 

He was sliding the photo into his bag when a crawling sensation swept up his back and nervous chatter broke out. Turning to the window, it took most of his self-control to keep from reacting the same way. A ball of crackling golden energy was barreling straight at the side of the plane. He knew it was dangerous, and he knew with equal certainty that it was coming for him. 

 

Usagi was the last thing he thought of as it struck.

 

88888888

 

She woke up screaming at the top of her impressive lungs. Her mother came charging in, expecting a kidnapper or monster, but there was nothing of the sort. All it took was a single exchanged look before Ikuko dropped the hairbrush she’d been brandishing and gathered her shaking daughter into her arms. That was enough to cut off her scream and Usagi shattered, weeping pitifully into her mother’s robe. “He’s gone,” she sobbed. “Mama, he’s dead!”

 

She figured out who ‘he’ was easily, but Usagi’s mother knew she had to do something. “Shh, honey, it was only a dream. I’m sure Mamoru-san is fine, and he’ll call you soon.”

 

Usagi shook her head vehemently. “He’s  _ dead _ . Something happened.” Her voice cracked, but she pressed on. “He was okay, then he was gone and I can’t find him. He’s dead. Mama…”

 

Kenji slipped in, concerned. “Are you okay, baby?”

 

Usagi slid bonelessly onto her mattress as her mother stood, gesturing for her husband to follow her. She pulled the door nearly shut as Usagi cried. Shingo looked at them worriedly but hung back. “Usagi just got a phone call,” she lied. “Something happened to her boyfriend on his way overseas. They think he might be dead.”

 

Kenji frowned and headed downstairs, turning on the television. A breaking news story came up, saying an international flight from Japan to America had vanished from radar. Military drones from a nearby carrier were out doing sweeps, but it was as if the plane had never existed. 

 

“Who called?” he asked.

 

“One of her friends. They didn’t want her to find out from some stranger.”

 

“The poor thing,” he said quietly.

 

88888888

 

Still crying, gasping for breath through her tears, Usagi summoned her Silver Crystal and desperately focused on its light. She begged it to bring Mamoru back, telling it she would pay any price it took, but no matter what she said, it didn’t react. Mamoru was beyond her reach, and it didn’t look like there was anything she could do to save him. 

 

88888888

 

Usagi wasn’t the only one who felt Mamoru’s death. The entire group knew through their connections to one or both of their leaders. Any sensitive or powerful humans probably noticed the magical shockwave that swept the planet too.

 

Usagi was incommunicado for the remainder of the vacation, refusing calls and visitors. At a loss, the girls went to their partners. Keiji was as silent as their princess, but he at least let Minako sit and talk to him. He blamed himself for not being there. It didn’t matter that they had no idea what killed Mamoru. The others were nearly sick with grief, struggling to understand a sudden and senseless death after they’d survived so much.

 

Monday finally came, and Usagi was in school. She responded to greetings and smiled, but she showed no sign of hearing it if they mentioned Mamoru. When one of their classmates asked about him, she said he was in America and twisted the ring on her finger. Makoto was ready to scream from sheer frustration when the teacher came in and they had to quiet down.

 

After they bowed and returned to their seats, their instructor told them they had transfer students and gestured in three young men. The girls in the class immediately started talking, not needing an introduction to identify the newcomers. One met Usagi’s gaze and sauntered over to the empty desk next to her. She recognized him after a second; he was the boy from the airport.

 

“Fancy meeting you here, Odango.”

 

“You too, Seiya-san.” She managed a thin smile before eyeing her classmates skeptically. “Why are they squealing like that? They sound ridiculous.”

 

“Really?” he asked, a falsely heartbroken look on his handsome face. “You still don’t know who I am? Even after I introduced myself at the airport?”

 

She shook her head, but then Minako lobbed a magazine onto her desk. The front cover was emblazoned with a picture of them, labeled ‘Three Lights’. Flipping to the article, Usagi discovered that they were a famous group of pop stars. She glanced at Seiya, about to comment, but the teacher was turning her way. Senshi-fast, she whipped the tabloid out of sight.

 

“What was that, Miss Tsukino?” their English teacher demanded. 

 

Usagi blinked, widening her eyes innocently. “What was what, Mr. Jenkins?” she asked in perfect, lightly accented English. She silently blessed the ancient magic that made her fluent in a language after she heard a few sentences.

 

The teacher shook his head and looked away, muttering something about seeing things and needing to make an eye appointment. Usagi shot Minako a dark look for nearly getting her in trouble. The other blonde only shrugged as the class settled into the lesson.

 

88888888

 

The girls tried to corner Usagi during their lunch break, but she vanished the instant class ended. It took twenty minutes of searching the school to find her. She had her head in Haruka’s lap under a tree at the far edge of campus. Her blotchy face told them she’d been crying, but she’d since fallen asleep. Michiru, sitting nearby, got up to talk to them. 

 

“Let her be,” the older teen said quietly. “She’s having a rough enough time as it is.”

 

“She won’t talk to us,” Makoto countered. “She’s barely acknowledged anything we say, and if we mention Mamoru-san it’s like she’s gone deaf.”

 

“It’s not exactly something she can discuss openly,” Michiru chided in a gentle tone that nonetheless felt like a sharp rebuke. “He and the others are only considered missing so far, and if your peers found out he was on that plane they’d all want to ask her about it. It’s too much.”

 

“Why did she come to you, then?” Ami asked, just as razor-soft as her Outer counterpart. “We would’ve understood what she’s going through.”

 

“You already have to help the generals. You need to be there for them; we don’t. We’re only concerned about her. That’s why she came to Haruka and I instead of you.”

 

“That’s thoughtful and _stupid_ all at once,” Minako said after a heavy pause. “No matter what, we’ll still be there for her. We always have been before.”  
  
“Usagi-chan knows you all want to help her, but she also knows the others don’t have anyone else. She said you’d need them if anything happened to her.”  
  


“ _ Is _ something going to happen to her?” Makoto demanded.

 

“You already know the answer to that,” Michiru said steadily. 

 

“The bond,” Ami realized in horror. “If he dies, she’ll follow. How long does she have?”

 

“I’m not sure,” Usagi answered, startling them. Haruka smoothed her hair as she sat up, but she quickly shrugged off the comforting touch. “It could be weeks or even months. There’s no way to know until it happens.”

 

“Can’t you bring him back?” Minako asked. 

 

Usagi didn’t respond; she didn’t have to. Her tears were answer enough.

 

88888888

 

Just over a week after the plane’s disappearance, Ami’s computer went off during class. She shot the other girls a panicked look as it happened again and again, hiding it under her desk as she hacked the school’s safety system to set off the evacuation alarms. Makoto called Rei on her communicator and asked her to go ahead as the girls followed their class out. Once things were sufficiently confused the four took off themselves, transforming on the run. Haruka and Michiru stayed behind to keep an eye on the vulnerable students. 

 

Mars hurried over, wild-eyed, when her sister Senshi arrived. “I’ve never seen anything like it. The monsters – they killed someone already.”

 

The group couldn’t even think about what Mars said. If the school had been in chaos, the scene awaiting them was utter pandemonium. There were at least thirty civilians, fleeing in every direction. The enemy was a pair of clearly alien girls with neon skin tones, but to the watchers’ horror, they grabbed a running man and held him down. Some sort of crystal formed as a flower blossomed from his forehead. He mutated into a similar creature as the gem went dark. 

 

“The computer is giving readings similar to a Senshi!” Mercury reported, shocked. The monsters’ sailor uniforms, while substantially different from their own, supported her statement.

 

“Spread out,” Venus ordered. “Whatever you do, don’t let them get a grip on you. We don’t want to find out if they can do that to us.”

 

“Your normal tactics won’t work,” a new voice said. Three women stood atop a nearby building, no more than silhouettes with the sun at their backs. They leapt down to ground level, letting the Guardian Senshi get a look at them. At first they weren’t sure what to think. Like the monsters, their outfits resembled the traditional Senshi apparel, albeit more revealing than the outfits their group wore. Their skin was at least a normal human color. 

 

Sailor Moon stepped up. “Block off the area. Raise a barrier if necessary. I’ll be okay.” The Guardian Senshi nodded and ran off, leaving their leader with the newcomers. “Who are you and what are you doing here?” she demanded.

 

“Now isn’t the time,” the silver-haired girl said shortly. “We only came for the phages.”

 

“Phages?”

 

“Senshi parodies. Get down!” the black-haired one snapped. “STAR SERIOUS LASER!”

 

One of the females shrieked in pain, making the others turn on the attacker. They readied their powers, but Sailor Moon pushed past them. “Don’t! They’re still humans!” She interposed herself between the combatants, not caring about the danger. “I won’t let you kill them!”

 

“If they aren’t killed, they’ll do this to everyone!” the brown-haired warrior snapped. 

 

“There’s always another way!” Her magic flared. The Eternal Tiare sprang to life; she clutched it tightly, wishing for its help. “STARLIGHT HONEYMOON THERAPY KISS!”

 

Waves of energy poured from its tip, flooding the area with light. The phages cried out as it touched them. The crystals reappeared in their original state, and a moment later the monsters were human. Sailor Moon banished the Tiare and hurried across the battlefield to find the man the phages had killed. She fell to her knees when she reached him. His neck had very obviously been snapped; he’d probably died immediately. The rest of the team broke the barrier and began checking on civilians as the black-haired stranger approached the kneeling blonde.

 

“I should have been faster,” she said distantly.

 

“You’re lucky it’s only him today. Phages left unchecked can overrun an entire planet.”

 

With a heart-wrenching sigh, Sailor Moon got to her feet. There would be time to face her failure and grief after she dealt with the immediate issue. “And you’ve seen it happen before, haven’t you? Who are you, and where did you come from? Why are you here?”

 

“Don’t answer her,” the silver-haired warrior growled. 

 

The first girl waved her down. “I’m Sailor Star Fighter. The rude one is Healer, and the quiet one is Maker. We’re the Sailor Starlights. You’re right; Kinmoku was destroyed by phages. We didn’t expect to find other Senshi here. Our records say you all died a long time ago.”

 

“So you’re refugees,” Sailor Moon said. She ignored Fighter’s last statement; their past lives weren’t something outsiders needed to know about. Fighter shrugged. “Well, anything you can do to help is appreciated. I hope we can work together to face this threat.”

 

“We’re not here to fight with you,” Maker said dismissively. “We’ll kill phages if we see them, but we don’t care about your war.”

 

“If they destroyed your planet, it’s your war too. Why are you here if not to fight?”

 

“This is all that’s left,” Healer told her, tone heated. “The person we’re looking for has to be here. Once we find her, we’ll go.”

 

Sailor Moon frowned. “You tried to kill people under my protection. I can’t just ignore that. If you won’t help us, are you our enemies too?”

 

“If you want to think that way. Let’s go, Fighter.”

 

The Starlights leapt away as the Guardian Senshi returned, telling their leader there were no other casualties and the various injuries were relatively minor. As they turned to go, Mercury gasped. “Sailor Moon, your back!” Three gashes cut from the middle of her spine to her waist, bleeding sluggishly. The Senshi of Wisdom quickly closed the wounds, leaving flawless skin behind. “You’re lucky that monster wasn’t venomous.”

 

The blonde twisted side to side, testing for pain, before shrugging. “I didn’t even notice. It’s a small price to pay to keep those poor people alive.”

 

“What do you mean?” Jupiter asked.

 

“Those new Senshi wanted to kill them,” Mars guessed.

 

Venus grimaced. “Who are they, anyway?”

 

“I’ll tell you later,” their leader responded. “Right now we need to get back to school before someone notices we’re not with the rest of the class.” Still, she looked in the direction the Starlights had gone as they left.

 

88888888

 

Mercury watched people going into the Buddhist temple for the wake, stress heavy on her shoulders. She understood Sailor Moon’s need to have someone talk to the victim’s family, but a public appearance after a battle resulted in a human death sounded risky. Zoisite had offered to accompany her, but she’d said no. PR was her job, and he was still torn up over losing Mamoru. 

 

To give herself a few more seconds before she approached the family, the Senshi of Ice pulled out her computer and called up the victim’s data. Tanaka Goro, 37, dead of a cervical fracture – that she’d seen herself. The angle his head had been twisted to… He was married with a four year old son and a daughter on the way. She needed to talk to his wife. Tanaka Airi had been calm when interviewed regarding her husband’s death, but his funeral would be difficult. 

 

With a snap, Mercury closed her computer and sent it to her subspace pocket. Looking at data she’d seen countless times wouldn’t do anything, and she’d promised to tell the widow how much they regretted her loss. They’d never had someone physically murdered before; any deaths had been mass magical events like the Black Moon Clan’s crystal in the business district. She sighed and dropped to the ground, holding her head high as people began to whisper. More than one voice was angry. Airi stood with her son by the coffin, a hand on her swollen belly and faint tear tracks on her cheeks. The boy flinched as Mercury approached, but his mother met her gaze without rancor. 

 

“Thank you for coming, Sailor Mercury. I didn’t expect you.”

 

Mercury bowed. “I’m sorry for your family’s loss, Tanaka-san. Believe me when I say that all of us regret being unable to save your husband.”

 

“I know you didn’t want this, but tell me what happened. Please.”

 

The blue-haired warrior hesitated before responding. “I got the emergency calls on our hotline, but the other girls and I were in school. We had to sneak out. Mars arrived on scene as the phage attacked your husband, but she had to focus on keeping the situation contained. She isn’t a healer, and by the time I arrived there was nothing we could do.”

 

The widow nodded slowly. “I understand. I appreciate your telling the truth.”

 

“It’s your fault!” Mercury turned to face the older woman who’d shouted – the victim’s mother. “If you’d been faster, my son would still be alive!”

 

“Mama,” Airi said soothingly, trying to stop the fight before it happened.

 

She shrugged off her daughter-in-law’s hand, all but shaking with fury. “Your war killed my child. The baby will never know him. You and your friends should be dead, not Goro!”

 

“If we were dead, nothing would have stopped the monsters from killing your son and countless others. I would have saved him if I could, but there was no time.”

 

She hated having to stand firm as the woman crumpled and her grandson put his arms around her neck. She couldn’t take back what she’d said even if she wanted to, and there was nothing she could do to make their family whole again. It was the most impossible thing she’d faced in her time as a warrior, and all she could do was bear it. 

 

“Maybe you should go,” Tanaka’s father said. “I have a great deal of respect for what you and the other Senshi do. I was in the army; I understand the difficult decisions war forces us to make. Tell your friends I said thank you.”

 

“I hope you know we would’ve done anything to prevent this.”

 

“I know. I’m glad you came.”

 

Mercury managed another shallow bow and one last regretful look at the closed coffin before turning and walking away, feigning deafness to the poison spewed her way. 

 

88888888

 

“Why am I not finding anything?” she demanded, frustrated.

 

Mercury paced the tiled floor of the command center she’d rediscovered under Crown and converted into a massive computer system when the processing ability of her handheld unit had been too small to make any headway. She’d discovered some amazing information about their pasts and other topics, but the data she was searching for remained elusive. Mamoru’s death and the disappearance of his entire flight were baffling. Her best guess was that the plane had somehow traveled to an unknown subspace, but that was all.

 

She set to work entering every bit of information she had on the new enemy, hoping it would be more useful than her search for their dead prince.

 

88888888

 

Haruka, Michiru and Setsuna listened grimly as the other girls told them about the attack once they met up at the Fruits Parlor. Hotaru was with them, but her mind was clearly elsewhere. The generals hadn’t been able to attend, and Ami was curiously absent.

 

“Does anyone know what those flowers and crystals were?”  Makoto asked once they finished. “They seemed important since they went dark during the attack then lit up again after Sailor Moon healed the monsters.”

 

“Phages,” the blonde corrected quietly. She’d contributed little to the conversation, but no one blamed her for it. They all knew what was wrong.

 

“I don’t remember anything like it. Haruka?” Michiru asked. The other girl shook her head. “We’ll look into it, but for the time being I think we’ll stay back and see what we can find out. We might be better off if we aren’t all at the battles.”

 

“A man died last time,” said Minako. “Wouldn’t it be easier if we all fought together?”

 

“No,” Haruka answered. “It might be the way to help civilians, but every time we’re in one place, we risk being a bigger lure to an enemy we know nothing about. Right now we have to find out what they’re after, and that means some of us have to stay out of sight and observe.”

 

“Then shouldn’t you be the ones on the field?” demanded Makoto. “You keep telling us your powers are stronger than ours.”

 

“You have spent more time working as a unit,” Setsuna explained. “From what you told us, any of you could kill these phages. Strength isn’t the issue. None of us can purify them.”

 

Their communicators started beeping, so Usagi switched hers open. “Mercury, what’s going on? Where have you been?”

 

“We have an attack,” Mercury reported. “Keio University’s science and technology section. Three or more phages.” She hesitated before continuing. “We already have casualties.”

 

“How many?” the blonde asked, voice cool, though she was gripping the table so tightly that no blood could move through her fingers. 

 

“I don’t know.”

 

She nodded. “We’re on our way. Will you be able to keep things under control alone?”

 

“Nephrite was already here for class. He’s the one who called me.”

 

Usagi nodded and turned to the Outer Senshi. “Will you fight with us?”

 

“We can’t,” Michiru said regretfully. “We’re playing at a Three Lights concert tonight.”

 

Haruka nodded. “We have to go, but be careful. There’s a dangerous tone in the wind.” The Outers left, but Setsuna had a look on her face that chilled them to the bone.

 

Minako managed to shake it. “Kunzite says he’ll be there as soon as he can slip away. Zane-kun’s in a lab but he’ll try to do the same.”

 

“What about Jomei?” Rei asked. 

 

“He doesn’t know if he’ll be able to get someone to watch the shrine. We need to go.”

 

They took off at a run, tucking various belongings into their subspace pockets as they did. A bunch of their friends went to Keio, and since Reika was a science student she could be caught in the crossfire. At least they knew Setsuna wasn’t there and Motoki was in a different section. During an alley shortcut, they transformed and kept moving. The school was on lockdown when they arrived. Sailor Moon swallowed before taking the lead, finding her way by the screams.

 

The auditorium had been full when the attack started. Still bodies littered the floor, unconscious or dead. The Senshi didn’t have the heart to check. Anyone still capable of moving was cowering under chairs, hoping to stay out of the line of fire. Mercury and Nephrite were near the podium at the very front, trying to keep the phages engaged and away from the vulnerable civilians, but they were badly outnumbered. Instead of the three initially reported, there were at least ten. Nephrite’s right cheek was bleeding profusely and Mercury was babying her left arm. 

 

“Start getting the people out of here,” Sailor Moon ordered her companions. “Leave the phages to me. I’ll send Nephrite and Mercury to help.”

 

“There are too many!” Jupiter protested. “You can’t face them alone!”

 

“Unless you know how to purify them, I don’t have any better ideas.”

 

There was nothing else she could say. Healing like that was beyond Mercury or Zoisite. Maybe Tuxedo Kamen could with the full power of the Golden Crystal, but he was gone, and his crystal’s power with him. Instead of wasting words, Jupiter grabbed the nearest bunch of people and led them to the door they’d come through, guarded by Mars and Venus. One of the phages tried to follow, but a golden whip cut off its approach and threw it back. Jupiter nodded her thanks to V and kept going. She wished she could move the wounded too, but it would draw the phages.  They’d have to wait.

 

Sailor Moon summoned the Eternal Tiare as she ran to her beleaguered friends. Nephrite hurried to his girlfriend as she did, but Mercury shook her head when she was gestured away. “You can’t fight alone,” she contested. “I can at least watch your back.”

 

It wasn’t worth an argument, so Sailor Moon squared with the first phage. “STARLIGHT HONEYMOON THERAPY KISS!” With Mercury keeping the monsters from attacking, all the Moon Senshi had to worry about was her energy levels. Healing was exhausting business, but it was almost easy compared to other battles she’d seen. That made things so much worse when they lost control of the situation. 

 

A strange phone booth appeared near the center of the room. The other warriors wanted to handle it, but they knew if phages had started out human, something caused the change. They couldn’t let more civilians become monsters. Sailor Moon had to focus on the existing phages. 

 

Mercury was the only one who saw the strike coming. An energy beam headed straight at Sailor Moon, and the others were too far away. She was there, but there was no guarantee that her powers would be able to stop it and she couldn’t risk it hitting her leader. With an awful detachment, she took the one remaining course of action and jumped in front of her best friend. 

 

It was like being torn apart. She could feel the crystal erupting, but unlike the phages it wasn’t coming from her head. It was from her heart, the very depths of her being. She hit the ground hard and forced herself to look at the crystal as it flew from her. Bile rose in her throat as she recognized her precious Mercury Crystal in a white-gloved hand before the gem vanished. 

 

Sailor Moon shrieked in fear and rage, turning on Mercury’s attacker with her awesome power. Her Kiss wasn’t a healing spell any more – it was destructive. The villain disappeared in a shower of moon-dust. Crying, the Moon Senshi forced herself to deal with the remaining phages as the others raced to the fallen warrior’s side.

 

Mercury had faced death more than once, but it had always been with the knowledge that if they were strong enough someone could heal her. There would be no coming back with her Sailor Crystal taken. She could feel herself coming apart bit by sickening bit. 

 

A strangled shout echoed through the auditorium as Zoisite appeared. She knew, through the little of their bond she could still reach, that he’d felt her fall and nearly revealed himself in his rush to her side. Her soulmate gathered her close, realizing she had precious little time. 

 

“You cannot leave me,” he whispered. “Please. I will not let you die.” 

 

She knew that if there were a way to save her he would’ve done it without hesitation, no matter what price he had to pay. If he could have given his life for her, she wouldn’t even have had a chance to say something before he’d done it. Grasping at the last bit of her strength, she summoned her computer and pressed it into his hands. Hers went through them seconds later, her physical form almost gone. “I’m sorry,” she gasped. 

 

“No, no, Ami-chan,” Sailor Moon moaned as she dropped to her knees. “Why?! I never wanted any of you to die for me!” The Silver Crystal appeared, but it only glinted dully..

 

“It was my decision,” Mercury said honestly.  “I don’t regret saving you. You’ll find a way to stop the enemy for good.”

 

“You’ve been with me this whole time. I can’t do it without you.”

 

It hurt to say such terrible words, but she had no choice. “I’m afraid you’re going to have to.” Zoisite’s eyes filling with helpless tears were the last things she saw. 

 

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By the time they finished sorting things out, the damages were staggering. There were eleven dead, not counting Mercury. Ninety of the one hundred fifty students had been injured, but most of their wounds were superficial. Three went straight into surgery and a handful more were in critical condition. The healed phages were distraught, but none of them knew anything. Those who’d seen the first attack described an energy beam like the one that killed Mercury. 

 

Venus directed the newly arrived medical personnel as the rest of the team converged on Sailor Moon and Zoisite. Kunzite and Jadeite had reached them just before the ambulances, and the blond was trying to talk to Zoisite while Mars spoke to her best friend. Nothing worked; it was like they had gone when Mercury did. Finally Kunzite picked up the Moon Senshi and had Nephrite and Jadeite help Zoisite to his feet. 

 

“Where was Sailor Mercury disappearing to this last week?” he asked. The others shook their heads. Disapproving, he fixed his youngest subordinate with an uncompromising stare. “You have her computer, Zoisite. It will be able to tell you if she did not. Check.”

 

The order of a superior officer was enough to stir him and he automatically complied. “I do not know if it will recognize –” His voice caught in his throat as the little machine came to life. Even in the Silver Millennium, she had never granted him access to her private terminal. “I have it,” he murmured through fresh tears. 

 

“Where was she?” Venus asked as she rejoined them. Silently, he turned the screen so the others could see. Most of them frowned, uncomprehending, but the blonde recognized the spot. “That’s the secret base. I used to work out of it as V.”

 

“The arcade will be closed at this hour,” Kunzite said, knowing the street address if not the place itself. “How do we get inside?” A large-scale teleport was beyond any of them.

 

“Motoki-kun will still be there,” Jupiter told him. “He does inventory and cleanup once the kids leave for the day. He’ll let us in.”

 

The general nodded. “We need to get to the arcade, then. Sailor Mercury would not have left the computer and her previous location behind if there was not something we had to see.”

 

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As predicted, Motoki quickly ushered them inside when they reached the game center. Venus opened the passage with the Sailor V game; a pair of the machines pulled aside to reveal a flight of stairs leading down. Huge screens dominated the walls. The main console was on, so Zoisite moved to access it in hopes that it would respond as Mercury’s personal computer had. Every machine lit as he sat down, and a hologram appeared in the center of the room.

 

“Mercury,” he choked, staring at the too-familiar figure.

 

“I am an artificial intelligence system created by Sailor Mercury in her image, possessing her knowledge. According to my protocols, your arrival means she died but had enough time to pass on her personal computer,” the Senshi’s doppelganger stated. 

 

“She sacrificed herself to save my life,” Sailor Moon said hollowly. 

 

The apparition nodded. “She thought such an act would become necessary. Lord Zoisite, Sailor Mercury configured the system so that you become the primary user and are given full access to all files when she died. She hoped you would use the information to end this war. She was running simulations before the attack; I will need you to key in what you learned.”

 

The screen flickered and became a data page. Most slots were full, but the last was eerily blank. It was regarding the enemy attack and its effects on a Senshi or similar individual. Zoisite swallowed hard but typed in what he had seen, felt and been told – the eruption of the crystal from the chest rather than the head, extreme pain and the total destruction of the victim’s body. When he hit enter, it read ‘beginning analysis’. 

 

“Can we help?” Nephrite asked tentatively.

 

“Were any of you trained in the use of Lunarian and Mercurian technology?” Zoisite responded coolly. “I do not recall.”

 

“You know we were not. It was your specialty,” Kunzite said. His tone was just as even, but the reprimand behind it was exquisitely clear. 

 

The blond lowered his eyes. “Then there is nothing you can do. She gave the system to me for a reason; I am the only one who knows how to use it. I will finish with she started.”

 

That was all it took for Sailor Moon to lose control. She gasped and sobbed harshly. The hologram vanished as she did. She powered down, unwilling to be a warrior any longer. “She did it for me! Every time, you give yourselves up for me. I can’t take it! It’s too hard!”

 

“Usagi-chan,” Jupiter began, taking a step forward.

 

Jadeite beat her to it. He seized the blonde around the waist and pulled her against his chest, whispering in her ear with an intent look on his face. Everyone automatically moved back, shocked as bloody slashes carved themselves into his skin, but he kept talking through what had to be a terrible amount of pain and only let up when she sagged in his arms.

 

“Take her home,” he told Jupiter and Venus, his normally beautiful voice hoarse and shaking. “Don’t wait around. She needs to be alone when she wakes up.”

 

Both girls were ready to argue, but one look at his bleak expression changed their minds. Jupiter took their leader and led the way out, leaving the Shitennou and Mars in the secret room. Zoisite stiffly got up and moved to his comrade’s side, laying healing hands on his injuries. 

 

“What did you do, Jadeite?” he asked with as much kindness as he could muster. 

 

Jadeite hissed as the first of the wounds began to close. “I used my gift. It was the only way I could help her while she’s like this.”

 

Kunzite frowned and turned to face them. “Did you go against your oath and use your words of command on the princess?”

 

Another grimace crossed his face, but it was born more of emotional discomfort than the physical agony he was experiencing. “She was about to have a meltdown, Kunz. I really didn’t have an option when you consider that she’s the only one who can fix this mess.”

 

“What precisely did you do?” he demanded. 

 

“I made her forget. Well, not forget exactly – she knows something happened, but she doesn’t know they’re dead.  It’s still going to be hard on her, but it’s better that way.”

 

“You didn’t even give her a choice,” Mars whispered, aghast. 

 

“I do not think you understand the consequences of what you just did,” said Kunzite.

 

“I understand I have no intention of doing it again,” the blond growled as Zoisite closed the last cuts. “She was already near her breaking point from losing Mamoru. Dealing with Ami-chan’s death on top of that would’ve been too much.”

 

It was hard, but Mars forced herself to think. “You’re right,” she realized. “Asking her to hold on is too hard for her, especially now. Will she ever know?”

 

“She’ll remember when she transforms; Sailor Moon can cope. I just couldn’t leave her to deal with it every minute. She doesn’t need to know she’s dying.”

 

“Are you going to do the same to me?” Zoisite questioned as he sat back down. “If you try to take my memories, I will never forgive you for it.”

 

Jadeite shook his head. “I wish I could, but it took a lot out of me the first time and we need you to handle the computers. Speaking of which, do we know what they’re after yet?”

 

“Yes,” he said with a tired sigh. “They want Sailor Crystals. The other gems, the ones that turn black, belong to normal humans. They can’t survive outside their bodies. Senshi and those like us have what are considered ‘real’ Star Seeds and would grant an enemy our powers.”

 

“You mean someone could attack us with Mercury’s gifts,” Kunzite reasoned.

 

“Yes. Or with Mamoru-sama’s.”

 

There was a second of oppressive silence. “Are you saying they killed him?” Mars asked finally. “They’re the reason for the missing plane?”

 

“Nothing less than the loss of the Golden Crystal could cause a death Sailor Moon would not be able to reverse.” He looked up at his companions. “They cannot come back unless we retrieve the crystals. If we do not, Sailor Moon and I are doomed.”

 

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Haruka frowned, shaking her head. “None of you will want to hear this, but the best thing we can do for now is to disappear.”

 

“What do you mean?” Minako demanded.

 

“Think about it. Every time they kill one of us, they’re that much stronger. They want our crystals, and we can’t give them up. By hiding, they can’t have whatever they’re working to get.”

 

“If we don’t fight, people will die,” Rei observed stonily.

 

“They’re dying even when you do,” Michiru reminded.

 

Makoto scowled. “That makes it okay? If we hadn’t gone, there would’ve been dozens killed – or more. We lost Ami-chan, and it’s horrible, but the deaths if we just stopped protecting civilians would be too much for anyone to bear. Usagi-chan would never allow it.”

 

“She wouldn’t know.”

 

The Guardian Senshi stared at Haruka, horrified. Eventually Rei found her voice. “That doesn’t make it right! We’ve fought for  _ her _ all this time, not the mission or the world or the past. We’re willing to die for  _ her _ . If we gave up, we’d betray everything she believes in!”

 

“As hard as it may be to accept, the loss of human lives, even in massive quantities, could save everyone,” Michiru explained. “They wouldn’t be able to find us.”

 

“If we abandon humanity, we don’t deserve our crystals,” Makoto said flatly. 

 

“It is a null point,” Zoisite said, startling them. Sitting at the computer without saying a word, they’d forgotten he was in the base at all. “Our disappearance would not stop this. If we were to vanish, they would not. They would devastate Tokyo, and if that did not net them what they wanted they would only expand outward until they had killed everyone on Earth, ourselves included. There is no victory in running and hiding. There is only death.”

 

Rei turned to Setsuna, who, like Zoisite, had chosen not to say anything up until that point. “You’ve seen the future. What should we do?”

 

“The future is irrelevant,” she answered. “You will fight. It is not in you to sit by when you could take action, and it would be wrong even if you could. You know this in your hearts. No matter the future, that is the choice you will make every time.”

 

“But does it help?” Minako asked. 

 

“That I cannot say. The path forward is too murky to be read, even by me.”

 

“Usagi-chan will make it work,” Makoto said staunchly. “She always does.”

 

Everyone was surprised again when Haruka nodded. “Okay. So what’s the plan?”

 

Minako frowned. “You just said we should stop fighting and now you want to plan?”

 

“Setsuna’s right. Even if it was the worst idea in the world, nothing would keep you from protecting people, and that one –” she gestured dismissively in Zoisite’s direction, still strongly anti-Shitennou – “says leaving wouldn’t help. Now we figure out what we  _ can _ do.”

 

Rei gave the older blonde a skeptical look before nodding. “Well, the first thing would be making sure no one fights alone, but it’s hard. Only Kunzite, Zoisite and Jupiter can teleport on their own, and Zoisite spends all his time here now.”

 

“And I flash around more than actually teleporting,” Makoto added.

 

“So there’s no way to guarantee we won’t be isolated during an attack,” Michiru said.

 

“Well, it’s easier for you,” Rei pointed out. “You and Haruka-san are always together. They’re not likely to catch you by yourselves.”

 

“More important,” Minako interrupted, “is to have enough people on hand to prevent as many casualties as possible – human or Senshi. We need your help.”

 

“All right,” said Haruka. “And what about those new Senshi? The Sailor Starlights?”

 

“We’ve only seen them once,” Rei replied. “We don’t know any more about them than what we’ve already told you.”

 

“We know they have Sailor Crystals,” Setsuna corrected. “They can be targeted too.”

 

That led to a moment of silence. Minako grimaced before breaking it. “We’ll warn them if we can, but I think they already know. It might be why they were so keen on killing phages.”

 

“Will they fight with us?” Makoto asked. “The stakes are certainly high enough.”

 

“It doesn’t matter,” Haruka interrupted. “They’re our enemies. We keep outsiders away.”

 

“They don’t have anywhere to go,” Rei argued. “Their world was already destroyed.”

 

“Their failure makes them that much more unwelcome. Odango will want to be friends, but if their planet’s gone, why are they here? Why didn’t they die defending it, like any of you would? How do we know they weren’t sent by the enemy?”

 

Michiru smiled. “You sound paranoid, Haruka.”

 

“They’re too trusting.”

 

“Hey,” Makoto protested.

 

“You let the Shitennou back in with only nominal difficulty. You were willing to side with the Dark Moon princes in the end. You even told us Odango was still on good terms with Tuxedo Kamen while he was Dark Kingdom, and we saw her give Mistress 9 the Grail.”

 

“All of those decisions worked out for the best,” Rei pointed out.

 

“You’ve been lucky. These so-called Starlights could lead her right into a trap, and she’d forgive them for it even as it killed her.”

 

“After everything, you still don’t believe in her?” Minako asked soberly.

 

Haruka shook her head. “It’s not Odango I don’t believe in. It’s everyone else.”

 

With a sigh, Setsuna got to her feet. “Hotaru-chan and I will go to our castles and do what we can to keep anyone else from entering the system. There is nothing we can do about the ones already here, but we may be able to buy you time.”

 

“Will you be safe?” Makoto asked. “All alone out there?”

 

“Not many people can beat Setsuna-mama in her own territory,” Hotaru responded. “And even if they do, I should be able to hold them off even longer. We’re your best hope to keep the situation here from getting totally out of control.”

 

At that moment, it really sunk in just how small she was. Rei, who spent a lot of time around kids as part of her work at the shrine, decided she couldn’t be more than nine or ten years old physically. If their plan failed, they’d have sent a child to her death. 

 

“Can’t you go alone, Setsuna-san?” Minako asked, unknowingly voicing Rei’s thoughts. “Hotaru-chan is so young. I know Usagi-chan would rather keep her safe as long as possible.”

 

The little girl turned and pierced the blonde with ancient eyes. “I’m only young in body,” she said quietly. “You can’t think of me as a child just because I look like one. I’ll hold them off as long as I can, and I’ll take them down with me if I have to.”

 

They teleported before the others could argue, and Rei shuddered. “They’re on a suicide mission and they know it. Hotaru-chan is just a girl, and Setsuna-san – she was only released from the Time Door a year ago. She hasn’t had a chance to live. How can we let them do this?!”

 

“We couldn’t stop them,” Makoto pointed out. “They always fight their way.”

 

“That doesn’t make it right.” The priestess shook her head, reluctantly accepting that there was nothing she could do to save them when they’d made up their minds, and glanced at Zoisite. “I’m going to talk to Ami-chan’s mom tonight. Do you want to come?”

 

He turned to face her, expressionless. “What is there to say?”

 

“She deserves to know what happened to her daughter, and I think she can be trusted. She wouldn’t do anything to jeopardize Ami-chan’s secrets.”

 

He was about to disagree, but Minako spoke up first. “It makes sense. At least this way she’ll know she has a chance of seeing Ami-chan again.”

 

“And you think I should be there?” he asked coolly.

 

She faced him. “Yeah, I do. You were her boyfriend, and you need the closure as much as she does. Really, we all should say our goodbyes. Just in case.”

 

Makoto frowned. “Do you really think this is going that badly?”

 

“I think anyone who can kill us with a single blow is dangerous. There has to be more of them out there. Who knows what can happen now?”

 

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The conversation with Ami’s mother was hard. Saying her teenage daughter was dead all but destroyed her, and then having to admit there was a chance she might come back seemed cruel. It gave Dr. Mizuno hope they weren’t sure they had. After Mars explained what happened Zoisite told her everything he could about their lives, and it broke his heart to say she couldn’t tell anyone the truth and would have to keep up the search for a child she’d never find. 

 

As difficult as that was, Mars knew the next important conversation she’d need to have would be worse. They needed to give their families something to hold on to in case they were next. Zoisite said he wouldn’t have much trouble since his family wasn’t close, if he told them at all, but she had her grandfather to think of. 

 

Rei stared at the fire, trying to make sense of the horrors of battle. Maybe it was supposed to be natural for Mars, War herself, but it had never been further from the truth. It was one thing to fall at the bitter end, knowing it was almost over. They’d never suffered a defeat so early in the game. They’d never watched a friend fade out of existence, powerless to stop it.

 

“Is something troubling you, Rei?” her grandfather asked as he slipped into the room. He was small and slight, and suffered from a number of health problems. She wondered if he’d live long enough to see her graduate high school. Well, it was overshadowed by her growing belief  _ she  _ wouldn’t reach graduation. “You’ve been quiet these past few days.”

 

The miko took a steadying breath before turning to face him. “We need to talk, Grandpa. There are a few things I have to tell you before it’s too late.”

 

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Yuuichiro was extremely surprised when Rei’s dad walked up the shrine steps with a few colleagues. Though he wasn’t aware of the nature of their feud, Rei’s first meetings with Jomei had clued him in to the animosity between father and daughter. He wanted to warn her, but the head priest couldn’t abandon men arriving for the baptism he was about to perform. Clearly the child’s parents were friends of the senator’s. He could only hope she’d stay out of sight.

 

The ceremony was done quickly, and Senator Hino excused himself to look for his father-in-law and daughter before Yuuichiro could slip away. He just hoped nothing too horrible happened while he was busy with the other visitors.

 

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The only thing that kept the senator from barging in when he heard his quarry talking was that they were in a sacred place. While he wasn’t religious, his late wife had been relentless in her determination that he know the protocol her family followed so he didn’t accidentally offend anyone. The old man might not be too upset, but Rei had little enough tolerance for him without his barging into a place she considered holy. 

 

“And that’s why I waited till now to say something,” Rei finished. The senator leaned in, interested despite himself. Rei kept any number of secrets from her father and he didn’t really care, but she was close to her grandfather and unlikely to keep anything significant from him. 

 

The old man sighed. “Rei, I knew you were Sailor Mars a long time ago. You have fire in your soul, and the way your abilities developed so early was telling. Besides, you could only do battle here so often before someone noticed a connection.”

 

There was a pause before the girl’s response came. Senator Hino waited for her to deny it, to say she wasn’t one of the mysterious warriors and had nothing to do with magic and aliens. He was doomed to disappointment on that front. “If you’ve known for so long, why didn’t you ever say something to me? I wouldn’t have lied to you.”

 

“It’s your secret. Yuuichiro-san doesn’t know, if that has you worried. I don’t think anyone who wasn’t here in the early days would, but if you consider the number of charms we have to repel evil, it’s rather peculiar that there have been so many attacks on sacred ground.”

 

“All this time, I thought you’d be surprised or even scared if I told you.”

 

Whatever she might have said after that was lost. Her father burst into the fire chamber, startling her into silence. “How dare you,” the senator hissed. “You have been going behind my back, taking part in an unsanctioned war that has cost the public a great deal of money. You and those like you threaten the very foundations of our society. I demand you quit immediately.”

 

Rei had been surprised by his sudden entrance, but she got over it quickly. Her temper immediately reared its head. “You don’t give me orders. I made that clear a while ago, as you might recall, and I couldn’t  _ quit _ being Mars even if I wanted to. I was born to be a soldier, and nothing you can say would make me turn my back on that.”

 

He scoffed. “So you’ll just keep betraying your own father for parlor tricks.”

 

“Parlor tricks?!” she fumed. “You have no idea what I’m capable of!” The bonfire flared dangerously at her back, threatening to break free of its confines. 

 

“Rei,” her grandfather said quietly. The fire immediately dropped to its normal level as she faced him. “This is not the place. The flames are sacred and even you shouldn’t violate that.”

 

“Fine,” she agreed, though the answer was bitten off and she sent her father a disgusted look. Without another word she hurried from the chamber. Her crows cawed, sensing her ire.

 

“I know this comes as a shock, Takashi-san, but you cannot control her,” the old man stated plainly. “She is beyond any of us and has a task at hand. You should not interfere.”

 

“My daughter is going to ruin me if this gets out,” he said tersely. “I should have known not to let her run wild. There has to be a way to get rid of these freakish abilities.”

 

“She is not a freak; she is a holy warrior called to a terrible and trying duty. Whether you approve or not, the Senshi are necessary and Rei is one of them.” The priest stood. “I can sense your foolish planning, and you are tampering with forces you do not understand. I have to be clear: I am Rei’s guardian and will do whatever it takes to protect her. I realize I am no threat, but the young men here are devoted to her and will help when I cannot. You should leave her alone.”

 

The senator gave his father-in-law a withering glare before walking away, smoothing his perfect façade into place so none of his companions would suspect his anger or his sudden need to have some time alone to think.

 

88888888

 

Mars cursed viciously as they ran. When the call came two days after her confrontation with her father, she and Sailor Moon were the only ones able to respond. Fortunately the info Zoisite was relaying indicated the attack was a secluded part of the park with few civilians and only a single phage. Hopefully the two of them would be enough. 

 

They needn’t have worried. Reaching the park, they saw the flashes of Senshi attacks and used them as a guide to the already fighting Starlights. Fighter and Maker kept the phage at bay while Healer watched their backs. Fighter turned their way as Maker fired an attack. 

 

“Good, you’re here! Take care of this, will you?”

 

Sailor Moon stopped, surprised. “I thought you killed them. You didn’t want to help us.”

 

“Working with you is one thing, but killing people is another.” Fighter smiled, ignoring Healer’s disgruntled muttering. “This is what you wanted, isn’t it?”

 

After a moment’s hesitation, she summoned the Tiare. “You need to get out of the way.”

 

“It’s going after that kid!” Healer shouted, drawing their attention to a little redhead. She was tiny, maybe two years old, and she whimpered as the phage’s claws extended. 

 

Mars’ reaction was immediate. “MARS FLAME SNIPER!” Her arrow flew, leaving a scorching trail across the monster’s arm and forcing it to hurriedly withdraw. 

 

Maker leapt over and pulled the child away, giving Sailor Moon a clear field. She swung the rod, gathering power. “STARLIGHT HONEYMOON THERAPY KISS!”

 

The phage fell, its Star Seed glittering again as it reverted to human form. Healer started to reach for the unconscious woman, ready to mend any injuries she may have sustained, but she stopped to study the little girl Maker was holding.

 

“Strange,” she said quietly before getting to work. 

 

“What’s strange?” asked Mars as she started checking other civilians, a few of whom were only down from mild injury while one or two had been knocked out. Fortunately there was nothing severe, and the lack of casualties was better yet. 

 

Sailor Moon’s Tiare vanished and she looked at the Starlights’ leader for an explanation. All the dark-haired teen could do was shrug in response, so she turned back to her irascible companion. “Is there something wrong with her?” Fighter asked.

 

Maker rejoined her, still holding the child. “She’s uninjured, if a little scared.”

 

The blonde took the little girl, settling her on her hip and murmuring comfortingly. Once she was satisfied that the toddler was calming down, she frowned at Healer. “What’s strange?” she repeated, more sternly than the other warrior had.

 

Healer glanced at Fighter before answering. “She was really bright when she was about to be attacked. That was what caught my attention in the first place. Now it’s as if she’s perfectly normal. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

 

“Bright?” Sailor Moon repeated, frowning. “I didn’t see anything but her and the phage.”

 

“Not physically bright,” the silver haired girl responded tersely. “Senshi bright. Can’t any of you see it? Sailor Senshi have a different aura than normal people. Hers was exceptional – even from the corner of my eye it was like looking at the sun. I couldn’t make out yours at all, and you’re the brightest I’ve ever seen before now.”

 

“Is it even possible for someone this young to be a Senshi?” Fighter asked. 

 

“If we were still at home I’d say absolutely not, but there might be different rules here. I don’t even know if she  _ is _ a Senshi. Like I said, she seems ordinary now.”

 

Mars got to her feet, hands on her hips, as Healer came to the person she’d been with. “Are you telling me you know who we are when we aren’t transformed?”

 

“That  _ would _ be the obvious conclusion, yes,” Healer said. “Would you like the trophy now or should we organize a ceremony first.”

 

Maker sighed. “Healer, be nice. Even if we don’t want to be a team, this is their world.”

 

It was just as well that her own teammate reprimanded her, because Mars had a distinctly unpleasant look in her eye. Jadeite’s advice would have been to get as far away as possible. One misstep could result in a fireball in an extremely delicate locale. Sailor Moon, while not quite as familiar with the expression as the troublesome general, recognized it anyway. 

 

“Mars…” she warned. 

 

The fiery Senshi glared for a moment before subsiding, but that didn’t stop her from saying something. “If you know who we are, you should at least give us the same courtesy.”

 

Fighter blinked. “Maker and I don’t know. It’s one of Healer’s abilities, and she won’t tell us unless she finds it relevant.”

 

“Which I obviously don’t,” the silver-haired girl muttered as she laid one gloved hand on a man’s chest, searching for internal injuries. 

 

It was Fighter’s turn to sigh. She turned to Sailor Moon with an apologetic smile. “You’ll have to forgive her; she’s still learning to cope with the loss of her pair-bond.”

 

“Pair-bond?” the blonde repeated as Healer stiffened. “What’s that?”

 

Mars looked at the unmoving Senshi, noticing the way her fingers were digging into her palms while otherwise utterly still. “It’s a soulmate, right?”

 

Fighter considered the word before nodding. “I think that’s what you call it here.”

 

Healer was on her feet in a flash. “Not another word. They’re not our allies; we don’t owe them an explanation. It’s time to go.”

 

For a moment, Sailor Moon dared to hope they wouldn’t leave. Maker didn’t bother with indecision; she went with her friend. Fighter hesitated, not quite following but not really staying either. The blonde took a half-step forward, hand extended, but Fighter turned and ran off. 

 

Mars huffed indignantly. “She obviously wants to talk, so I don’t know what the point of this constant denial is. And what do Healer and Maker have against us?”

 

Sailor Moon shook her head. “I wish I knew. What do we do with this one, though?” The little girl was asleep on her shoulder and the victims hadn’t woken up from Healer’s restorative trance yet, so she tugged on her broach and melted back into civilian form. Mars did the same, trading her Senshi uniform for her school one. She’d been leaving archery when the call came in. 

 

“She might be who the monster came for,” Rei suggested. “If she’s so ‘bright’.”

 

“You don’t believe her?”

 

The miko sighed. “She didn’t seem to be lying, but I’ve never heard of an ability that could identify us through our glamours. I just don’t know.”

 

“We should take this little one to Zoisite, then. He can find her family and we’ll be able to figure out what to do with her from there.”

 

88888888

 

“What do you mean she doesn’t exist?!”

 

To his credit, Zoisite didn’t wince when Rei shouted almost in his ear. He kept his gaze trained on Usagi and the child. “Without a name, it is not easy to find someone, but I checked birth certificates from all over Japan and every foreign arrival since her approximate birth date and none of them are for a girl with red hair and blue eyes. I can keep looking, but thus far I see little reason to be optimistic.”

 

“A time traveler?” Usagi said, trying to solve the mystery by talking through it like Jomei did. “She seems a little young, don’t you think? And Pluto didn’t mention anyone coming.”   
  


“Sailor Pluto has not been at the Time Door with any regularity for some time, so it is not impossible that a skilled individual may have slipped through unnoticed.”

 

“A two year old probably doesn’t have that sort of power,” Rei observed dryly. 

 

“Indeed. Still, the idea of her being a powerful magic user is worth exploring. The more pressing question is what to do with her in the meantime.”

 

The blonde frowned. “I’ll take her home with me. Mama and I can make excuses, and if she has powers she’s better off with us. My wards will keep enemies from finding her there.”

 

Zoisite nodded. “You are sure you do not feel anything from her, Rei-san?”

 

“Nothing. As far as I can tell, she’s totally human.”

 

88888888

 

Rei wasn’t sure why, but Healer having a sixth sense she didn’t grated on her nerves. She was a Seer, but the auras she saw were indicators of a person’s nature and mood, with intensity speaking for their health. Her friends’ looked identical whether they transformed or not. 

 

She’d walked Usagi and the girl home. About halfway there, the child woke up. They tried asking about her mother and where she was from, but all she did was cock her head to one side and say “Chibi?” It was exasperating, but it led to her nickname, Chibi Chibi. Once they reached the Tsukino residence, Rei reawakened the amnesia spell Chibiusa had used on Kenji and Shingo so they’d think she was part of the family. Ikuko took to the little girl at once. When she was sure her best friend would be all right, Rei headed home. Her family was expecting her. 

 

It was strange, she thought. For a long time, all she’d had was her grandpa, and he was wonderful, but he was only one person. Then Yuuichiro came to the shrine. She hadn’t expected him to stay, and she certainly hadn’t expected him to leave his wealth behind to become head priest when her grandfather was too weak to keep up with all the work. She thought of him as a brother, though she was aware of his crush on her. She just hoped he’d be able to move past it.

 

Jomei, though. Out of all the surprises her life had brought, he was the biggest. For a long time, she’d believed that men didn’t matter. Remembering Jadeite hadn’t done her any favors. He was gone, even if his body was still around. The other Jadeite, who had allied with them against Beryl, convinced her she’d never want anyone else. She resigned herself to belonging only to Usagi, a soldier forever. Jomei’s appearance turned everything upside down. He was real, he was alive, and despite everything he loved her. He fought for her. It was the greatest gift of her life.

 

Rei was so caught up in her thoughts she didn’t realize something was wrong until a goon appeared and shoved her toward a car. She went to punch him, but realized who was inside and dug in her heels instead. She wanted nothing to do with her father, but she didn’t want to make his wrath worse by publicly revealing her abilities either. 

 

“Rei, don’t be an idiot and get into the car,” he said. “You know better than to make a scene. A girl your size couldn’t possibly beat that man. Do you want to out yourself?”

 

She considered doing it just to prove she could, despite having already thought the same thing, then an argument that a small girl could still win a fight if she had knowledge and skill, but it wasn’t worth the backlash. Angry, she let the minion steer her into a seat opposite the senator, a glare firmly set on her lovely face. It only intensified when she saw Kaidou, who’d been her first crush. Kaidou, who’d married on her father’s advice and broke her girlish heart before it had learned of and been consumed by Jadeite. She almost hated him for the cruelty he hadn’t known he was dealing out. Forcing it back, she focused her anger on her father. 

 

“Isn’t kidnapping a little beneath you?” she spat. “Normally you send one of your slaves to fetch me. Or do I matter more now that you know what I can do?”

 

“It’s actually your bad attitude that merited my personal attention,” Senator Hino replied, as calmly as if he was ordering a meal. “We really can’t have you misbehaving like this. Imagine what it would do to my career if people found out about your… activities.”

 

“Right,” she sneered. “We wouldn’t want people to know I’m a hero. What part did you dislike, again? My saving lives? My being one of the most admired people in the country?”

 

“The uniform, for one. It is unseemly for a senator’s daughter.”

 

Rei seriously considered punching him in his smug face. A broken nose would mess with his precious image enough to be worth the retaliation. She frowned when, sensing her thoughts, Kaidou shifted defensively. She managed to relax into a more casual pose but kept glaring. 

 

“If you want to convince me to give up being Mars, you’re wasting our time. I  _ am _ Mars. It’s not a title I can hand to someone else; I was born this way. Nothing you say can change it.”

 

“I would rather you be reasonable about this. You can marry Kaidou-san like you always wanted and be a good, dutiful daughter. Put this entire messy business behind us.”

 

She frowned. “Kaidou got married years ago. You arranged it, remember?”

 

“There was an accident. She died,” Kaidou said softly.

 

Rei flinched. She might hold a grudge, but no one deserved to lose someone like that and he’d been legitimately fond of the girl. “I’m sorry.” He nodded as she turned back to her father. “That doesn’t change anything, though. I would’ve married Kaidou once, but I’m not that girl. I won’t be a pawn, and even if you managed to make me, I’d still do my job. I always will.”

 

“Is there anything I could say to persuade you?”

“ _ Nothing _ could get you what you want from me.”

 

“Then I’m sorry it had to come to this.”

 

Before she could react, the security guard she’d hardly noticed lunged forward and stuck a needle in her arm. The effect was immediate. She reeled as the drug broke her grasp on her psychic powers. Visions welled up until she couldn’t see. 

 

To their misfortune, the mental assault only served to trigger her soldier’s instincts. The guard got a single sharp jab to the throat. It wasn’t enough to do permanent damage, but he was out until he remembered how to breathe. Her father took the next blow, and his eyes were already blackening as she turned on Kaidou. She lunged, but the momentary impediment of her seatbelt was enough for her father to manage a second syringe. Her dreams quickly dragged her under.

 

88888888

 

Phobos cawed, then Deimos. They swooped down from their tree, and Jomei studied them with a frown. It was rare for the crows to get agitated when Rei wasn’t there for them to sense her emotions. She was late; maybe that was it?

 

He changed that opinion fast when Deimos cuffed him with one outspread wing. It didn’t hurt too much, but it wasn’t pleasant either. There was only one thing that would rattle them so badly – something had happened to Rei.  Phobos confirmed it when she nearly sliced his scalp open. He barely managed to duck in time before swatting at her with his broom. 

 

“Instead of trying to maim me, you could say something!” he complained. 

 

They wheeled his way a second time, screeching. He deflected Phobos’ talons just in time, but Deimos hit him with her wing again. He muttered a few curses and headed for the trees, hoping if they had privacy they’d talk instead of hitting him. Didn’t they know he wanted Rei to be safe too? Once he was far enough to be out of sight, he turned into Jadeite and faced the crows. They gave him dirty looks before transforming themselves. The sprites stood on a low branch, putting them at eye level. 

 

Phobos put her tiny fists on her hips. “Aren’t you going to go get her?”

 

Jadeite ran one hand through his shaggy hair. “You’ll have to be more specific. The only reason I know something’s wrong is because you two decided to use me for target practice.”

 

Both of them scowled at him. “Idiot,” Deimos said succinctly.

 

“Did it not occur to you that the Senshi were being deliberately picked off and a psychic connection with Mars might be useful?” Phobos demanded.

 

He sighed. He didn’t exactly disagree with them, at least in terms of the practicality of the bond, but what happened in his and Rei’s relationship was no one’s business but theirs and they’d chosen to wait. “It’s not your call to make. Now will one of you tell me what’s going on?”

 

Phobos sniffed haughtily. “Maybe we should get Sailor Moon instead since you couldn’t even tell Mars was in trouble and needed you.”

 

“Usa-chan has enough on her plate. Just tell me so we can do something about it.”

 

“Fine,” Deimos grumbled. “Mars was on her way home when someone forced her into a car and drove away. We can’t sense her properly; we think she’s been drugged.”

 

“Can you find her?”

 

“Can a crow fly?” Phobos retorted.

 

The Shitennou of the East rolled his eyes. “I’ll take that as a yes, then. Give me a few minutes to let Gramps know I’m leaving.”

 

They returned to bird form as he powered down, though Deimos pecked at his bright hair for a few seconds as he returned to the shrine. He located the old priest and explained that he’d have to leave for a few hours, adding almost off-handedly that he was worried since Rei wasn’t home yet. Instead of questioning it, her grandfather just nodded and said he’d help Yuuichiro.

 

That done, he slipped away to change back into Jadeite. He leapt into the boughs of a nearby cherry and used it to jump across to another, keeping an eye on the crows as they traced their mistress. They were in the city proper in seconds and he took to the rooftops, an illusion keeping anyone from noticing him. Occasionally one of the birds would fly ahead while the other stayed close, like they were scouting out the way.

 

It took almost an hour with occasional backtracking to reach their destination – a private hospital on the northern outskirts of town. It was about a kilometer from the beach, but the rocky coast was inhospitable, so he doubted it attracted many visitors even during the warmer months. 

 

“She’s  _ here _ ? Why?”

 

_ How would we know? _ Phobos asked.  _ We weren’t with her. _

 

The bird had a point. Jadeite gestured for them to wait and slipped inside, invisible. When the nurse at the front desk was distracted – a patient was tearing through the lobby in the nude while shouting about dragons fighting evil butterflies – he looked through the files of newly admitted patients. At first it didn’t seem like she was there, but he recognized a signature on a form admitting an anonymous girl. It took several deep breaths to keep calm and not go looking for the senator in a fit of bloodlust. He needed to check on Rei first.

 

88888888

 

When Rei opened her eyes, she felt like she was crawling through jelly. Her body barely responded to her commands and her mind only seemed capable of replaying bits of horrifying visions. She felt another trying to creep in, and it took far more effort than usual to hold it off. 

 

“Are you awake?”

 

For a few seconds she couldn’t place the voice, but once she did she jerked her head that direction as quickly as she could and scowled. It was a weak effort and she knew it, but a show of defiance was better than nothing when she was cuffed to a bed. “Where am I?” she demanded. Her tone at least obeyed, as sharp and venomous as she’d intended. “What did you do to me?”

 

“You’re in the hospital. The doctors are treating you for delusions.”

 

Summoning what little strength the drugs had left her, she yanked on the restraints. “And these? Do they get rid of delusions too? You know I can break them easily enough.”

 

“Not before the drugs hit your system.” Hino Takashi moved a trigger for some sort of medicine pump into her line of sight. “If you try, I’ll push the button and you’ll be unconscious.”

 

Rei went totally still. Losing control again would open her back up to the visions she had just escaped, and what she’d already seen was so bad that she truly feared the drugged oblivion. “How will that help if you’re not here to see me?”

 

“You’re misunderstanding. The only reason you’re awake now is so we can talk. While I’m not here, you’ll be kept sedated while your doctors look for a way to curtail these strange ideas you’ve gotten into your head. We don’t want you hurting yourself while you’re confused.”

 

“Confused?!” she repeated. “I’m not confused! You’re out of your damn mind, but I’m not confused! I know exactly who and what I am! You on the other hand are completely insane!”

 

“You really shouldn’t talk to your father like that. I wanted to discuss a deal; that’s all.”   
  


“What deal?” Rei asked begrudgingly. If she could lie her way out of the hellhole she’d woken up in, she’d do it and plan her vengeance once she was free. “Do I have to give up my Senshi powers or some such bullshit? Is that where this is going?”

 

“Language, Rei. That sort of behavior is unbecoming in a lady.”

 

Where he’d gotten the idea she’d act like a lady after he kidnapped her she’d never know. Even the combination of Catholic school and lessons on royal decorum could only do so much. “Believe me, I’m aware of that. I just don’t care. So what do you want?”

 

“I want you to give up these mad dreams and marry Kaidou-san. Is that so horrible?”

 

She thought about telling him precisely where to put that idea but decided it wouldn’t be worth it. Like it or not, he had control of the situation and she had to avoid making him angry until she was strong enough to fight back. “I’m not marrying him, and I’m  _ not _ delusional.”

 

“Does that mean you don’t want to cooperate?” His finger hovered over the button. 

 

Her eyes narrowed, but she was saved from having to respond by a doctor stepping into the room. Taking advantage of the momentary distraction, she ripped one hand out of its restraint and reached for the IV in her other arm. Her fingers were scant centimeters away when a wave of paralyzing pain hit her. She gasped, trying to force herself to cross that small remaining distance, but it was too late. Her arm flopped uselessly at her side. The doctor frowned. 

 

“We can’t have you remove that IV. The medicine will keep you from hurting yourself.”

 

Her vocal cords were as useless as the rest of her body. All she could do was stare at him hatefully. Her father got to his feet and followed the other man out. She could see them talking on the other side of the glass as she tried to resist the urge to sob. 

 

“Oh, Rei, please don’t cry.” Jadeite appeared in the visitor’s chair at her side, holding a hand she couldn’t feel. Her eyes latched onto his, pleading, and he managed a tight smile. “They can’t see or hear anything I don’t want them to, and I already turned off that dreadful thing. It’ll take a while for the effects to wear off, but you should be able to talk soon.”

 

They sat quietly and waited. He maintained his grip on her hand, caressing its back with his thumb. She couldn’t help the tears, but he just brushed them away without a word. “How did you find me?” she finally croaked as the paralysis ebbed.

 

“Phobos and Deimos led me here. Did they hurt you, firebrand?”

 

She managed a teary half-laugh at the nickname. “Not really. It’s all the drugs that are the problem. I can’t – the visions, they’re too much.”

 

He closed his eyes for a moment, trying to rein in his raging inner darkness before he did something terrible. “I know. Zoi told me after I read him your file. It’s ironic that by trying to stop your  _ delusions _ your father’s making them worse.”

 

“It’s awful,” she whispered. “When things happen in dreams I feel them. I was dying.”

 

His gaze shot to hers, alarmed. “You Saw your death? When? How?”

 

“I don’t know. They’re coming too fast for me to make any sense of them.”

 

He leaned in until their foreheads were pressed together, ignoring her sweat-soaked hair and clammy skin. “I’ll get you out of here,” he promised. “Now, if you want. I don’t care if your dad calls the police. I could make you disappear.”

 

“You can’t,” she replied gently. “We can’t be exposed, and he would do it. You need to find another way. Just hurry. He’s trying to marry me off.”

 

Jadeite recoiled like a man who’d just seen an angry cobra. “He  _ what _ ?! He can’t do that!”

 

“He seems to think if I’m a good society daughter and marry one of his favorites I’ll stop being Mars or something. I won’t, but with those drugs I might not  _ be _ me anymore.”

 

He entered into a mental discussion with Zoisite, demanding to know if such a thing was possible. When his friend admitted it was, he was horrified. “No. It’s… It’s just wrong.” He leaned over and gave her a quick kiss. “I have to go; they’re about to come back.”

 

The panicked look in her eyes made him feel like the basest scum. “You’re leaving me?!”

 

“I have to. I’m sorry, firebrand, but I swear I’ll get you home as soon as possible. We’ll find a way.” He got up but stopped again at the door. “I love you, Rei. I’ll put a stop to this.”

 

Later, she’d blame the drugs for the crying and pleas for him to stay. It didn’t do her any favors when the doctor and her father heard her talking to someone who wasn’t there. The IV started again, pulling her into the chasm of tragic visions. 

 

88888888

 

Jadeite went to work immediately, reaching out to anyone who could help. Zoisite found a way to get Rei out of her father’s control, and while it made the other man nervous he didn’t see a better answer. Her grandfather promised him whatever he needed, unsurprised to hear the shrine assistant was a wizard-king general in love with his warrior princess granddaughter.

 

It took three nerve-wracking days to get everything together. Finally, after agonizing over every second’s delay, he was ready to free Rei. Straightening his tie, he hurried into the hospital. 

 

“Can I help you, sir?” the nurse on duty asked. 

 

“I’m looking for my wife. Her name is Rei.” He handed the woman a picture of them together. “A friend said she and her father came this way a few days ago. Have you seen her?”

 

“She looks familiar, but the only girl I can think of isn’t married.”

 

His distress was entirely genuine, albeit not for the reasons the nurse would think. “We had just got married before she disappeared. I have the license with me if you want to see it. Is she here? I’ve been looking everywhere!”

 

She frowned at the document in front of her. “You’ll have to discuss this with the girl’s father. He’s here for a visit. Would the two of you like some privacy?”

 

“Please.”

 

He was led to an empty lounge and left to wait. Rei’s father came in a few minutes later, impatiently smoothing his suit and flashing his camera-perfect smile. “Miyamoto-san, the nurse just gave me some wild yarn about you marrying my daughter. Would you like to explain?”

 

“It’s not a yarn,” Jomei said coldly. “Rei’s my wife, which means you have no business deciding her fate for her. Let her go.”

 

“Rei is a teenager. She can’t get married without parental consent.”

 

“No, she can’t get married without her  _ guardian’s  _ approval,” the blond corrected. “That would be her grandfather. He performed the ceremony himself; ask him if you don’t believe me. Now I suggest you let me sign her out before I do something you’ll regret.”

 

“Those documents are obviously forgeries, and we both know the old man would lie for her in a heartbeat. You’re doing this for her friends, aren’t you? You’re helping the Senshi.”

 

Jomei smiled darkly, and it intensified when he realized the senator was trying to hide a black eye with cosmetics. She’d gotten a shot in. “I’m doing it for Rei, but I guess you could say I’m doing it for them.” He waved a hand and the blinds shut. The bolt in the door threw itself, and as it did the illusion of normalcy slid off. The general of the eastern territories slammed his hands against the table. “I’m one of them. That means I’m dangerous.”

 

“Showing me what you are just puts you at a bigger disadvantage. You can’t beat me, Miyamoto. You have nothing, and I could have both of you publicly crucified.”

 

“What you clearly don’t understand is that I have a number of useful abilities. You would never be able to prove it, but a friend helped me break into your offices last night. We found a lot of documents and tapes your competitors would find quite interesting. Rei will get out of here today; that much is guaranteed. The question is whether or not your secrets come with her.”

 

The older man narrowed his eyes. “You’re bluffing.”

 

“I’m really not. It might hurt my dad, but I don’t care. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for Rei.” Jadeite straightened, a smirk turning his charming face into the icy mask of a trained killer. “I’m going to ask again. Are you going to let us go or are you going to fight me?”

 

“Rei is mine to do with as I please.”

 

“I hope you never say that to her face.” He summoned a ball of fire and let it dance across his fingers. “Just so you know, my idea was to kill you and break her out. It would’ve been easy. The others said it would upset Rei, so I had to put that one aside. If you push me, I’ll do it.”

 

“You’d risk the anger of a Senshi?”

 

Jadeite laughed, and the sound was so far from its usual childish glee that it immediately raised the hair on the senator’s arms. “If I told her I accidentally lost control, she’d believe me. She trusts me, which is more than I can say for you.”

 

“So if I let you take her, you won’t tell anyone about the things you found.”

 

“Nope.”

 

“Would you keep her from being a Senshi?” he asked smoothly.

 

The blond snorted. “There’s no way to stop her and I wouldn’t want to.”

 

“And if I try to keep her away from you?”

 

“Do I need to repeat myself? I’ll ruin you. Or I’ll kill you. Either one is fine by me.”

 

The senator turned his calculating mind one way and another, but he couldn’t see a way to keep control of his daughter without losing everything else. He had no doubt his old friend’s son would do exactly what he’d promised; he’d seen that sort of ruthlessness before.

 

“Not biting?” Jadeite asked when the pause took longer than he liked. The fire vanished. “Maybe you’re braver than I thought, if you’re willing to risk my wrath. That’s all right; I have options. Hurting you openly would upset Rei, but I’m an illusionist. I don’t have to leave a mark. I could drive you mad with visions, the same way you’re tormenting her.”

 

“Your parlor tricks can’t hurt me.”   
  


“You’d be surprised.” The older man withdrew in surprise as Jadeite’s face was replaced with one he knew. Now his late wife was standing across from him, hands on her shapely hips. Even the voice changed. “Why didn’t you come?” Risa asked. “Why didn’t you stay with Rei?”

 

“What are you doing?” Senator Hino asked shakily. “How do you sound like her?”

 

The general watched the senator slowly relax as the illusion melted off. “I took it straight out of your mind. I’ve done this before. When my victim couldn’t stand it a second longer, he put out his eyes, but since the illusion was in his head, it didn’t help. Eventually he killed himself. I could do it again. I wouldn’t even feel that bad.” He didn’t mention that he’d been brainwashed and out of control the first time. It didn’t matter; he wasn’t lying.

 

“You win,” the older man said. His hands trembled as he pushed the papers back across the table. “You’re Rei’s husband. You can do whatever you like with her.”

 

Jadeite shot him a wolfish smile. “Glad you could see things my way. Let’s go clear this mess up with the doctors. That drip needs turned off as soon as possible.”

 

He managed to hide his predatory grin while the hospital gave him the papers for Rei’s discharge. Her father stayed to lend legitimacy, but he couldn’t shake the fear the demonstration had left in him. If anything, Jomei was glad. Hino Takashi would not be in a hurry to hurt his daughter again. If his methods had been underhanded and unethical, all he had to do to banish his misgivings was remember how lost and afraid Rei was. 

 

She looked worse than she had the last time he’d seen her. The drug doses in her charts were far beyond lethal levels in humans. The fact they’d been administered meant doctors had observed her extremely atypical resistance even if Mercury’s safety programs kept their analysis from seeing her foreign DNA. He set to work, using his suggestive ability to dull their memories while his illusions altered the papers. He had to let them push her to the entrance in a wheelchair, as per hospital regulations, but as soon as that precaution was handled he scooped her up and took her to an illusory car. The fake vehicle was soon out of sight and he leapt into the trees.

 

“Tell me you’re real,” she whispered as she clung to his neck.

 

He pulled her closer. “It’s me, firebrand. I’m right here. You’re out of that awful place.”

 

“What did you do?” she asked. “You didn’t hurt my dad, did you?”

 

“No. I wanted to, though.”

 

“I know.” Rei pressed her face into the side of his neck. “Take me home. I don’t want to see him ever again.”

 

“I will. Before I forget, though…” He set her on a branch nearby and pulled a thin golden ring out of his subspace pocket. “Just in case he tries to test us. It’ll make what I told him real to the rest of the world.”

 

She frowned. “What does a ring prove?”

 

Jadeite managed a wry grin. “I had to be your husband to have the authority to get you out despite your father’s wishes. It’s all quite legal except for your agreement. Gramps gave me permission and everything.”

 

“You… married me?” she realized. “Really?”

 

“You can get it annulled later if you want, but our other ideas all involved the good senator conveniently falling off a tall building or walking in front of a bus.”

 

“No, that’s not what I meant. Did you really, legally marry me, Jade?”

 

“Well, yeah. You don’t mind, do you?”

 

She threw her arms around his neck again; they nearly fell out of the tree. “I love you,” Rei whispered into his hair. 

 

The general smiled. “It was purely selfish, I promise. I just can’t live without you.”

 

“Did you do anything else I should know about?” she asked.

 

“I may have shown your father the marriage license, blew my cover, threatened to ruin his career, and used visions of his dead wife to drive him mad.”

 

“Oh, is that all?”


	2. Part 2

Jomei crossed his arms. “No.”

 

“I’m the only one who’d be able to find it,” Rei argued. She’d been in bed since she got home the day before; the drugs were still making it difficult for her to get around or focus. 

 

“No.”

 

“Jomei-kun, be reasonable,” Makoto said. “We don’t have a lot of Seers. Masato won’t be able to look until the stars are out and there’s no guarantee he’d be able to find it when they do. If Michiru-san could sense it, we’d already have heard. We’re not asking Rei-chan to fight.”

 

“No. Going anywhere near it is just as bad. She’s never been more vulnerable. I’m not going to watch her come apart; she’s staying where I can keep her safe.”

 

Keiji spoke up. It was unexpected, since he normally let them handle their own problems. “We do not even know how capable we are against this enemy. If she is leading us to the battle, she will at least be surrounded by warriors. Here there is only you.”

 

The blond frowned at his leader. “That doesn’t make me feel much better, you know. I didn’t go through all that getting her out of the hospital to put her in danger now.”

 

“I can make my own decisions,” she countered. “Just because we’re supposedly married doesn’t mean you get to call all the shots.”

 

“It should,” he grumbled.

 

Minako put her hands on her hips. “Jomei, honey, it’s cute that you’re so protective, but Rei-chan knows what she’s doing. If she’s Seeing a battle clearly enough to find it, we need her.”

 

“Can’t you just describe it to them?” Jomei asked a little desperately.

 

Rei shook her head. “All I have is a general direction. I’m no help unless I get closer.”

 

“Can I at least carry you?” he said, knowing when he was beat.

 

She rolled her eyes, but it was mostly for show. She really did need the help. “I guess. Do I need your permission to transform too?”

 

Jomei snorted. “Hell no. Are you kidding? I want you to flambé anything that so much as looks at you funny. You certainly wouldn’t be able to outrun it.”

 

The others didn’t waste time once they’d secured the couple’s cooperation. Everyone transformed and Kunzite called Usagi. Their mental link was weaker since Mamoru’s death, but aside from Mars, the girls hadn’t developed the ability enough to use it as an effective method of communication. Venus could talk to Kunzite, but that was about it. The Moon Senshi said she’d alert Uranus and Neptune and find them. Once Mars was ready, Jadeite picked her up and fussed until she reminded him she knew what she was doing. 

 

Following the stirrings of danger, the Senshi of War directed her companions through the city. Nephrite began to sense a coming disaster as the sun set, but there weren’t enough stars out to tell him more. Jadeite’s one hope for sending her home safely was dashed. 

 

They arrived as the strange phone booth did. Its passenger was different, the previous occupant having died attacking Mercury. This woman was tall and pale, with blue-white hair falling past the backs of her knees. Her powder blue outfit was even more outlandish than the Starlights’, but the feature that drew the eyes was the strange gold bracelets so at odds with the uniform. Any plans for further observation were discarded when she shot not one but ten of the lethal beams into the already panicked crowd. Mars saw six Star Seeds go dark.

 

Jadeite hurriedly set her in a sheltered alcove, standing in front of her with a chakram in each hand. Sailor Moon arrived and went after the mystery warrior, but she was elusive and kept the blonde away long enough for the phages to awaken. Soon screams filled the air as the group tried to get the innocents out of the way so the Moon Senshi could handle the monsters and their maker. The phages were multiplying at a terrifying rate. 

 

“Jade, go!” Mars ordered. “They’ll just keep spreading if we don’t do something!”

 

“I won’t leave you!”

 

She grabbed his arm. “Don’t make my visions come true. Someone could die.”

 

“I don’t want that someone to be you,” he said softly, rubbing her cheek with one thumb.

 

“I know what I’m doing,” she reminded. “Go. Go!”

 

Nephrite was nearby, hard-pressed to keep the phages from a group of civilians cowering behind him. His spear could easily have cut them down, but he knew not to kill unless there was no other option. With a last uncertain look, Jadeite threw his weapons, summoning a fistful of magic and launching into the fray. Mars watched him go.

 

Sailor Moon was doing the best she could, but she was one girl against more than twenty enemies. The Starlights and Uranus and Neptune arrived minutes later, giving them a chance to force the monsters closer to her healing light. They were going to win, the fiery Senshi knew. But if it was as easy as that, why was the stranger lingering?   
  


She got her answer all too soon. The woman locked her gaze on Zoisite. Mars gasped as she realized one of her terrible visions was about to be made real. Losing Zoisite could cripple them. He was the only one who could access Mercury’s computers. For the time being, he was indispensable. Instead of thinking, she took to her heels. Her body, still ravaged by the effects of the drugs, wasn’t strong enough to get them both to safety. Their only chance would be if she could push Zoisite away and take the blow herself. She’d Seen it; it would work. 

 

The beam struck. The general flew back. She landed on him, screaming as her body was forced to surrender its life-giving crystal. She saw Sailor Moon’s mouth form a silent shriek. 

 

The mystery warrior quickly departed, Jadeite’s chakram embedded in her arm. He was almost sobbing when he reached her side, but as soon as their eyes met he was perfectly, eerily composed. “I told you not to come,” he said quietly. “Why don’t you ever listen to me?”

 

Mars wanted to respond, but she couldn’t. Every scrap of strength she could summon was being used to keep her body stable, and she knew it wouldn’t be enough. Trying to stay alive was hurting her more than losing her crystal had. He realized the same thing moments later.

 

“Mars!” Sailor Moon cried. “Nonono, Mars, please, don’t die. I can’t lose you too!”

 

All she could do was shake her head. Jadeite’s grip tightened. “Just let go,” he whispered. “Please, sweetheart. You’re only going to hurt yourself more.” He leaned in and sang wordlessly in her ear until she was gone. His tears fell as the last sparkles faded away. 

 

88888888

 

For two days, the group was in a horrible stasis. Jadeite vanished immediately after Mars died, and Sailor Moon was nearly hysterical with grief. She had barely recovered from that when she had to carry the news to the shrine. Yuuichiro wept. Rei’s grandfather listened with silent grace, making it harder still, but it was the least she could do. Jomei’s absence made it obvious a hole had been torn in the shrine’s heart. 

 

Kunzite tried and failed to locate the general. It was an old talent Jadeite hadn’t used in years, one he needed to manage his spy network. He couldn’t have his leader pulling him out if things got ugly and had learned to turn invisible in the psychic sense as well. Zoisite eventually tracked him with Mercury’s computers. Once the data came up, he teleported to his friend’s side.

 

It was the smell that made the first impression. The heavy scent of alcohol barely masked a thick miasma of vomit and other unpleasant bodily excrement. Jadeite slouched at one of the bar’s corner tables, a huge bottle of vodka by his elbow. The blond had clearly made significant progress with it – the container was more than half empty, and Jadeite had a glass in hand. He raised it in Zoisite’s general direction before downing the whole thing. 

“You look terrible,” Zane said after he dropped his transformation, knowing no one was there was sober enough to notice or give a damn. “Have you been here the whole time? You should go home. Everyone is worried sick.”

 

“Don’t care,” he grumbled. It was a testament to his superhuman physiology when his words came out entirely unslurred. “Still got some drinking to do.”

 

“I think you have had quite enough already,” the younger man observed. 

 

“I’m not drunk yet, so obviously not.”

 

“Can we even get drunk?” Zane asked.

 

“Doesn’t look like it, but I’ll keep trying.”

 

Zane snatched the glass when Jadeite reached for it, but it didn’t have the desired effect. The older man just shrugged and took a long draw from the bottle. His friend watched in awed disgust as a third of the remaining liquor vanished. “That is not healthy.”

 

He finally met his friend’s gaze. His eyes were bloodshot, and Zane quickly realized it wasn’t from the booze. “What do you want, Zoi?”

 

“We want you to come home. You are not the only one grieving.”

 

Jadeite laughed, the sound cold and hollow. “And misery loves company, right? At least you have the comfort of knowing you’ll be able to follow Ami-chan. I don’t even get that.”

 

Zane frowned. “What do you mean?”

 

“The whole bond thing,” Jadeite replied, waving the bottle. “I don’t have that. I can’t follow her without dying the old fashioned way.”

 

“I wish Rei-sama had not saved me. She would still be alive otherwise.”

 

“TO HELL WITH THAT!” Jadeite roared. His chair flew as he shot to his feet, clattering loudly in the newfound silence. The bar’s handful of other patrons looked their way, concerned, but with a snarl Jadeite extended an illusion around their corner so they wouldn’t notice anything out of the ordinary. The anger and adrenaline burned through what little grasp the alcohol had on him. “DON’T YOU DARE TURN WHAT SHE DID INTO SOMETHING SHE’D REGRET! SHE MADE HER CHOICE! THIS IS WHAT SHE WANTED!”

 

“I would not presume to question Rei-sama’s reasons,” Zane said reasonably. “I only wish you did not have to carry this burden as Usagi-sama and I already do.”

 

“DON’T YOU GET IT?! SHE KNEW WHAT WOULD HAPPEN TO HER AND DID IT ANYWAY! SHE SAVED YOU FOR A GODDAMNED REASON!”

 

“She… knew?” Zane repeated. “How? Why would she do that?”

 

Jadeite’s anger subsided, and he slumped against the table as his grief reasserted itself. “You know how, but I doubt she knew what she’d predicted until it happened. She wouldn’t have been able to save both of you in her condition, and she chose you.”

 

“How do you know that?”

 

“No one understands her like I do.” He took up the vodka again, but he at least sipped instead of gulping. “She was…  _ damaged _ after the hospital. She barely knew the past from the future, and Nephrite and Neptune are Seers too. You’re the only one who can use Mercury’s computers, so you had to live. Or she could’ve decided I need you. We were best friends once.”

 

“You no longer think so?” Zane didn’t think he could put into words just how much that sentiment surprised and hurt him. It was true; in Elysion they’d been inseparable. To hear that Jadeite didn’t feel that way anymore was a painful shock.

 

He gave a derisive snort. “You haven’t really been my friend in a long time. You weren’t the only one they messed with, you know.” Jadeite took in his friend’s wounded expression and changed subjects. “I think I’m an alcoholic. Is that even possible when I’m essentially immune?”

 

“Were you like this before?” Zane asked curiously. He chose to accept the implied olive branch and not comment on the reference to their dark times. There would, he hoped, be time to repair their friendship later. Whatever burden he carried over the past would not take that too.

 

“All the time. Eighteen and a drunk sort of thing. It’s why my family never tried to find me; they thought I’d run off while I was trashed again.”

 

“That is awful.”

 

“I never claimed we were close. How’s Usa-chan holding up?”

 

“As well as can be expected. She struggles with not knowing what happened to them, but it is better than seeing her break again.”

 

“She’s too tough. It was touch and go at first, but that girl is stronger than anyone knows. She would’ve pulled through. I should probably get home, though.”

 

“I am sure she would appreciate that. The shrine is in a bit of disarray without you.”

 

Jadeite shook his head. “No, like I’m actually going home to my house. I won’t go back to Hikawa if Rei isn’t there, and the clock’s ticking down. I want a chance to make amends with my family before something happens to me.”

 

“You are not a Senshi. We have no reason to think you will be targeted, and you already said you do not have the bond with Rei-sama. You should be quite safe.”

 

The older man sighed. “That may be the case, but I’m  _ tired _ , Zoi.” He got to his feet and met his friend’s eyes. “We both know this ends one of two ways. We all die, or we all live. Either way, I’ll be with her again. This is me trying to make things right before that happens.” 

 

Zane had no good reply to that chilling statement, so Jadeite shed his magic and began the five kilometer walk to his family home in Nagata-cho. They had changed the gate’s passcode since he moved to the shrine, so he had to call up to be let in. His mother greeted him at the door. 

 

“Jomei, darling, I just heard something strange from your father. Hino-san says you married his daughter in secret?”

 

He scoffed, unsurprised that the senator had managed to turn the unwanted arrangement to his advantage. “Yeah. She was caught in one of the Senshi battles a few days ago, though. She’s missing. Her grandfather and I have been looking everywhere.”

 

“Oh, sweetheart,” Suzu murmured. “She’ll be all right; you’ll see. We can have a late bridal shower after you find her. Come in, come in. Did you need our help with something? Money? Will you be staying for dinner?”

 

Jomei caught her hand before she could think of something else to say. “Mother, stop. I’m staying, at least for now, but I need to talk to you. It’s important.”

 

Until that moment, he’d never thought to reveal himself to his family. He wasn’t going to tell his father, since he’d decided not to search for his missing son, but his mom was right there and even if she wasn’t terribly smart she was wholeheartedly devoted to her family. He needed her support before he did something he couldn’t come back from. He led her to the sitting room and the whole sordid tale came pouring out. 

 

Suzu blinked once, twice. “Oh my. And here I thought you just had a drinking problem.”

 

That startled a laugh out of him, more legitimate than he imagined possible. “Well, there’s that, but this seemed like a bigger deal. I’m sorry I waited so long to tell you.”

 

“No, don’t be. I completely understand. I’m proud of you, sweetie. You’ve been so brave, handling this horrible situation alone, and I feel terrible for not realizing something happened to you while you were missing. I should have looked for you.”

 

He wanted to bask in his mother’s kindness, but it became painfully bittersweet when he remembered how poorly Rei was treated by her father in a similar situation. Jomei managed a thin smile as she bustled him into the kitchen to put together something to eat. 

 

“So how long will you be staying, dearest? I already sent the maid to find some towels and freshen up your rooms. Your father will be so pleased that you’re back.”

 

“I don’t think I’ll be here for more than a few days. Sorry, but there are some things I’ve got to do for the Senshi before I hang up my cape.”

 

“Whatever you think is best, of course.”

 

88888888  

 

Sailor Moon stood on the roof, staring at the world far below her feet. In civilian form, she might have feared the great height, but in an empowered state it was nothing. She was numb.

 

“Should you really keep showing yourself with someone knocking off Senshi?”

 

Like the height, the unexpected voice should have scared her, but it seemed like too much effort to feel anything besides her heavy grief. “Fighter. What are you doing here?”

 

“Shouldn’t I be asking you that?” the dark-haired girl replied. “I’ve seen you show up out here for days and wanted to know what was going on.”

 

Sailor Moon looked out over the city again. “I just needed to get away.” 

 

Fighter sidled up next to her. “From what? Is something wrong?”

 

“Aside from mysterious warriors who won’t tell me what they’re doing here?”

 

“I would if I could. Healer and Maker are the ones who don’t want your help.”

 

“You’re their leader. You could make the call if it really mattered to you.”

 

“Maybe,” she admitted, surprising the Moon Senshi. “But we’ve lost so much; they’re all I have left. I don’t want to upset them by making a decision without considering their feelings. What would you do if you were in my place?”

 

Sailor Moon laughed a little. “Ask the girls; they’ll say I do things without consulting them all the time. They think I’m reckless and never consider the consequences of my actions.”

 

“Are they right?”

 

“Seems like it. Though in my defense, I do think of the consequences. They’re just not as important as my reason for doing whatever it was in the first place.”

 

Fighter sat on the ledge, and after a moment’s hesitation the blonde did the same. “You never told me what you were trying to get away from, though. I can’t tell you a lot, but if you answer my questions, I’ll fill you in on what I can.”

 

Sailor Moon offered her a wry smile. “You seem awfully interested in my motives, if you’re willing to bribe me to get what you want.”

 

“Is it working?”

 

“I guess,” she said tiredly, deciding to just trust her and worry about the repercussions another time. “After Mercury died, one of my teammates sealed my memories. He thought I couldn’t handle it, and he was probably right. I was in a bad place; I might have given up if Jadeite hadn’t cast the spell. I certainly let it happen. I only know they’re dead when I’m Sailor Moon, so I transform and come out here to grieve in peace. Losing Mars, Mercury… Tuxedo Kamen-sama… It was terrible, and I’m basically useless when I’m this scared.”

 

“Tuxedo Kamen?”

 

“You really haven’t been here long, have you?” Fighter shook her head, so she continued. “He’s my – what did you say – pair-bond. He died before that first fight, but we think the enemy had a hand in it. I don’t know how to hold it together without him.” The other girl put her hand on the blonde’s shoulder, trying to be comforting, but Sailor Moon shrugged it off and got to her feet again. “Don’t, Seiya. I don’t want to be coddled.”

 

The black haired warrior scrambled up as well, shocked. “What did you just call me?!”

 

Sailor Moon sighed. “Oops. Well, that cat’s out of the bag.”

 

“You said none of you could see Senshi auras!”

 

“We can’t, or at least Mars and I can’t. I haven’t asked Neptune or Nephrite, but I think they would’ve mentioned it by now. I figured it out.”

 

“What gave us away?” Fighter demanded through gritted teeth.

 

“I’m good with people – body language, expressions, stuff like that. Maybe it makes up for how stupid I am. There are certain things only a soldier in a war zone would do, and there’s no reason for a student to act that way. I have to say, you being guys threw me for a while, but if I can turn into a groom whenever I want I don’t see why you couldn’t become a male idol.”

 

The taller girl inhaled through her nose, distressed. “No one was supposed to know. That was the point of the disguises. If you put together the pieces, someone else might.”

 

“Please don’t leave. I won’t tell anyone, I swear. I haven’t so far.”

 

“How long?” she asked tiredly. 

 

“I’m not sure. It took a while for everything to add up, but there was something about you when we met. It didn’t really feel solid until after we talked about Healer knowing who we were. I started looking and Yaten-kun’s eyes lingered on us a little too often to be coincidence.”

 

Fighter slumped, defeated. “Do I at least get to know who you are? Since you found us?”

 

She looked a little disappointed. “I was hoping talking about it would let you figure it out. I thought maybe someone would be able to see me through the glamour.”

 

The glimmer of  tears in her eyes gave the other girl pause. She thought of what Sailor Moon said about ways only a soldier would act and how Healer had watched them. The pieces finally came together, and the dark-haired warrior gaped. “ _ Odango _ ?!” 

 

“Yeah.” Her expression brightened slightly. “I’m glad you figured it out. I’m not allowed to tell people who I am anymore. The girls say it gets me in too much trouble.”

 

As a Senshi herself, Fighter understood their system. “But – if you’re Sailor Moon, you have to be the Moon Princess. You have the Silver Crystal!”

 

That statement was an unwelcome surprise. Sailor Moon backed away; too many people had come after her for the crystal to take any chances. “What about it?” the blonde asked. Her fingers drifted over her broach, seeking its comforting weight. The gem didn’t hide in its center as it once had, but she could still feel its power radiating through the gold. 

 

Recognizing her discomfort, Fighter held her hands up. “No, I’m sorry. Don’t be scared. It was just a shock, and knowing you’re Odango means I can trust you at least a little. You seem like someone she’d reach out to.”

 

“She? The girl you mentioned at the airport?” Her first instinct was to go for her weapon, but Fighter hadn’t done anything and she wasn’t willing to hurt someone who might actually be an ally when she’d already lost so many. “Who is she?”

 

The other girl managed an awkward smile. “I’m making a mess of this, aren’t I? I was referring to our princess. We came here looking for her after the attack on our homeworld, and she’d mentioned finding the Silver Crystal’s keeper since they might be able to help. I was hoping you’d know where she is.”

 

Sailor Moon slowly shook her head. “If we crossed paths, she didn’t introduce herself. You and the other Starlights are the only newcomers I’ve seen.”

 

The taller girl’s face fell. The earpiece of Fighter’s headset beeped before either could break the tense silence, and she sighed. “I have to go, but maybe… we could talk again? I didn’t mean to frighten you, and I can try to get Healer and Maker to come around. You’re the closest thing I have to a friend here, Odango.”

 

Years of fighting made her wonder, but her team was right when they said she’d trust anyone no matter how risky it seemed. She nodded. “I don’t know if I’ll come back, but you can meet me here if I do.”

 

“What about school? Can’t we talk there?”

 

Sailor Moon shook her head. “If you don’t want anyone to know, school’s not a good choice. Uranus and Neptune are always watching, and they don’t like outsiders.”

 

Fighter frowned but nodded. “We can figure something out. I’m just glad you trust me enough to meet up at all.”

 

“It’s what I do. Thanks for talking to me, Seiya.”

 

The dark-haired warrior smiled a farewell and leapt off the roof, heading into the heart of the city. Sailor Moon watched her go, wondering if she’d made the right decision. 

 

“She’s nice.” Sailor Moon spun as Jadeite appeared, discarding his illusion so fluidly it was like he’d just emerged from the night sky. The blonde sighed in relief when she realized it was a friend. “They might be good allies for you after all.”

 

“Jadeite. Where have you been? We looked everywhere for you; I was so worried.”

 

“I needed to be alone, and I’m not really back. There’s something I need to do first.”

 

She stepped into his embrace anyway, knowing without words that he needed a chance to grieve as much as she did. Of all the generals, he was the closest to her. Like Motoki, he was the older brother she didn’t have, and she knew how much he loved her best friend. 

 

“I miss Rei,” she whispered into his chest. “So much that it hurts to breathe. Losing Ami-chan and Mamo-chan was bad enough. I don’t know what to do.”

 

“I know,” he murmured, running his hands up and down her back in an effort to soothe her. “She was my rock too. This isn’t over, though. I know you. You’ll stop them, and hopefully you’ll bring her home. Maybe I’ll even see you again.” 

 

“Where are you going? Jade?” He stepped away and she frowned. “What are you doing?” Her voice cracked on the last syllable as she took in his stony expression. “No. Whatever you’re thinking, don’t do it. It can’t be worth it. I don’t want to lose you too.”

 

“I’m sorry, Usa. What I’m going to do – it’s a terrible thing. I don’t want to hurt you, but it’s the best idea I’ve got. I hope you’ll forgive me someday.”

 

“Y-you would never hurt me. You’re one of my best friends. Jadeite, please, stay here. We can figure out what to do next together.”

 

He vanished before she could do anything else, and his sweet, sad voice bounced back to her before fading to nothing. “I’m so sorry.”

 

88888888

 

If Kunzite was surprised to hear someone pounding on his front door so late at night, his expression certainly didn’t show it. Even finding a half-drenched Sailor Moon in the slow drizzle of a beginning storm, wings dripping, merited almost no reaction. 

 

“It’s Jadeite,” she told him seriously even as he ushered the heroine inside and wrapped her in a blanket. “He’s going to do something terrible if we don’t stop him.”

 

The general only nodded. “Would you like me to call Mina for you?”

 

“What? No, I don’t need Minako-chan. Kunzite, listen.” She caught his sleeve as he went to leave the room. “Did you even hear? Jadeite’s planning something. We have to find him.”

 

The leader of the Shitennou sighed and sank onto the couch beside her. “I heard you, but though I hate to admit it, there is no way to stop Jadeite. He knows I can demand his compliance, so he will avoid me. Whatever he seeks, I doubt anything will sway him from his course.”

 

“But what is he doing?!”

 

“I do not know. He has always been difficult to read when he wishes to keep something to himself. Whatever it is, he knows we would try to stop him, which cannot bode well. I have already asked Zoisite to search for him, but he will not be found.”

 

She lapsed into a defeated silence before finally dredging up the courage to ask her next question. “What do we do now?”

 

“Zoisite will continue his search, of course, but as things stand, we must hope Jadeite’s plan will require him to resurface in a time and place that will allow us to regain control of the situation. It is a far-fetched wish indeed.”

 

Her hair hid her expression, but Sailor Moon eventually nodded. “All we can do is wait.”

 

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If she’d thought the horrible frozen state they’d fallen into after Mars’ death was bad, the one that followed her discussion with the last general was so much worse. Knowing something awful loomed on the horizon with no way to avoid it had her constantly on edge. She’d thought to look for Fighter and ask the Starlights to keep an eye out, but something seemed to be keeping the other warrior. She didn’t appear on the roof again during that endless stretch. 

 

It felt like it had been forever since Jadeite’s startling announcement, but in reality only five days elapsed before things started to happen. They were summoned by an anonymous caller on Mercury’s hotline, leading them to a crowded concert. Jupiter, the first arrival, was already hurt by the time they joined her.   
  


“I don’t know how long it took me to get here,” she explained as Zoisite magically set her wounds to rights, “but by the time I did it was ugly. Three Lights always pull in a crowd, and the enemy’s using it to their advantage.”

 

“Where are they?” Sailor Moon asked, trying to sound concerned for their classmates but not worried on a more personal level. The taller girl eyed her, sensing something amiss, but as always Jupiter chose to let it go. “Did they make it out okay?”

 

“It looks like it. Security was over there in no time, and the pandemonium supposedly started toward the back.”

 

Venus, Kunzite and Nephrite were working closely to avoid any surprise attacks. Uranus and Neptune appeared and swept through like angry gods, forcing the phages back and opening the way for civilians to escape. They were badly outnumbered, but removing possible victims from the equation helped even the odds when the monsters were not intelligent or organized. 

 

“STAR SERIOUS LASER!”

 

Sailor Moon nearly choked on her relief when the Starlights leapt into the fray. Fighter sent her a cautious smile as the three split off in different directions. Maker and Healer didn’t seem inclined to friendliness, but as long as they were safe, she didn’t really care. At the edges of the crowd, their power flared and connected, creating a triangular ward. To the others’ surprise, humans were able to pass through unopposed while phages stopped in their tracks. The Starlights worked toward the center again, tightening the net. Finally the entire lot was pinned down. 

 

“Now, Sailor Moon!” Fighter shouted. A bead of sweat rolled down her face, making it clear how much strain the maneuver was putting on them. Doubtless the lack of trust between the teams was what kept them from similar tactics before. She had never seen the Starlights more vulnerable than they were in that moment.

 

Instead of a verbal response, she was immediately on the move. As soon as she had an unobstructed shot, she drew the Tiare and swung at the phages. “STARLIGHT HONEYMOON THERAPY KISS!”

 

One by one, humans replaced the mindless monsters. The Starlights took a step back to accommodate the crush, waiting until all of them had returned to their natural state before Healer moved to deal with the worst injuries. Zoisite quietly offered his assistance, and surprisingly the silver-haired teen didn’t immediately rebuff him. Sailor Moon assumed Fighter had the promised talk with her after all. It seemed like it was over, but it wasn’t. 

 

Jupiter screamed as she fell into Nephrite, already fading as her emerald-colored crystal was torn out. The others formed a protective circle around their shell-shocked leader. A tanned woman stepped out of the phone booth. It was as unexpected as the attack; none of the strangers had faced them before. Her face was drawn into angry lines as the Jupiter Crystal vanished. 

 

“Where is he?!” the warrior snarled. 

 

“Where is who?” Venus snapped, her sword clasped in bloodless fingers. She wanted, so badly, to put it through the newcomer’s throat, but they needed any answers they could get.

 

“The man,” she spat. “The one who hurt Seiren. Where is he?!”

 

Sailor Moon took a deep breath and spoke up. “We don’t know. Why do you want him?”

 

“Seiren…” she whispered. “Seiren, because of him… Seiren was killed! Because he hurt her! If not for him, I’d still have my only friend!”

 

The group recoiled, and Fighter edged over by Sailor Moon. “I recognize her. Her name’s Sailor Lead Crow. They’re Senshi, sort of. They kill the real ones to take their powers. She’s part of Shadow Galactica.”

 

“STOP IGNORING ME!” Lead Crow shouted. “TELL ME WHERE HE IS, OR I’LL KILL ALL OF YOU!”

 

“I’m here.” Jadeite was suddenly in the concert hall, standing between her and the rest of the team like a living shield. “Take me to your leader.”

 

“I – what?”

 

“You have to do that if someone asks, don’t you? That’s how your organization started.”

 

Lead Crow shook her head. “I don’t care. No! You’re the reason Seiren died! I’m going to kill you!” The phone in the box behind her rang, ominously abrupt. Once, twice, three times… then silence. The warrior’s shoulders slumped in defeat. “Fine. I don’t have a choice. Get in.”

 

Jadeite inclined his head in agreement, but Sailor Moon fought against the many hands holding her back. “Jade, no! What are you doing?!”

 

Kunzite struggled with what to do. He knew Jadeite’s true name and could command him, but he’d sworn long ago not to do so. More, he couldn’t risk giving it to so many others when only he and their prince knew it. He realized with horrible clarity that Jadeite was counting on his oath and nearly went against it, but he knew he would never forgive himself if he did. 

 

“Sorry, princess,” Jadeite said quietly. “This is something I have to face.”

 

He stepped into the phone booth and it vanished, taking him and Lead Crow with it. They were left with terror and the last sparks of Jupiter. Nephrite’s hands and knees hit the pavement as he silently wept. 

 

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Jadeite took in his new location with impassive eyes. They were standing on some sort of platform, but the tiles were transparent. He could see the dizzying patterns of space through them, as well as all around. There were no walls or ceilings, and the area was unadorned except for a single throne-like chair at the far end. A woman stood behind it. For a moment she was long haired and simply gowned, but as she turned it was replaced with a more war-like look. If her hair was still long, the tightly curled style it had taken made it impossible to tell. Her outfit was a metallic version of the uniform he’d seen so many times. He didn’t like the parallel.

 

“You’re like them,” he said, breaking the silence. “A thief who deposed her planet’s soldier for her own gain.”

 

The golden figure chuckled humorlessly. “So those cowardly Starlights managed to tell you that much? I admit I am surprised; I expected them to avoid you and yours until I could get around to eliminating them. Maybe I should move up the schedule. I was hoping to let them lead me to their precious princess, but they’re proving troublesome.”

 

“They said nothing to me. I was watching, invisible, hoping for something I could use. Fighter just told Sailor Moon before I appeared.”

 

“How friendly of her,” the woman sneered. Jadeite noticed idly that Lead Crow had kept her head deferentially lowered since her mistress looked their way. “And you think I am the same as my servants, do you?”

 

“You wear the bracelets as all your subordinates do.”

 

The mystery soldier laughed again. “At least you pay attention. That is more than can be said for most of my slaves. Did you come to join me? I suppose I could use more intelligent servants, even if men are not the norm here.”

 

“I came for information,” the general said quietly. “I don’t know if you have any interest in my brothers and I, but my fate was decided when Seiren took Mars. This is my swan song.”

 

“What do you mean?” Her voice was cold and demanding. 

 

“I’m not here to join you; I’d kill myself first. Everything I’m seeing and hearing is being sent back to Sailor Moon and our allies in hopes that they’ll learn something we can use against you. If you thought I’d turn on them, you were wrong.”

 

Rage clouded her features. “How dare you come here to help that miserable excuse for a princess?! You will pay for your insolence!”

 

“I expected as much. Do your worst; I no longer care.”

 

“You will,” she promised. With a sudden gesture, the warrior behind Jadeite choked and collapsed, fading almost immediately. Her bracelets appeared briefly in the golden soldier’s hand before disappearing as well. “Do you recognize me, boy?”

 

“How could I? I’ve never seen you before and I’m not a historian. If there was something about you in our records, I wouldn’t know. Zoisite never mentioned it. Of course, there’s so much information to go through and he’s only one person.”

 

“My name is Sailor Galaxia,” the woman announced haughtily. “Unlike my apparently less than worthy servants, I am not a false Senshi. My gifts are real.”

 

“Maybe,” he acknowledged, hearing the truth in her words. It would’ve been better if she was just a copy. The real thing could bring to bear powers that a usurper could only dream of. “But it doesn’t change anything. You’re having fakes steal the magic of the real guardians.”

 

“That is not all I can do,” Galaxia said calmly. “As much as I am sure you wish it was. I can do so much worse.”

 

A single red crystal separated from the cloud behind her throne, sparkling with inner fire. In the course of a heartbeat, it flared and took on a familiar form. Every little detail was precisely as he remembered, save one. Sailor Mars stood before him, golden bracers on her wrists. 

 

“Mars…” he whispered, caught off guard. He’d considered countless scenarios, but his soulmate’s reappearance had never crossed his mind. 

 

She moved with a Senshi’s lightning speed, darting forward and snapping the bones in his right forearm before dancing back. The surprise elicited a gasp, but he’d expected pain when he came and had been prepared for it. Mars was the only thing that made him react at all.

 

He turned angry eyes on the mastermind of the situation. “This is horrible. What you’ve done to her, to all of them, is the worst sort of crime.”

 

“You say it like I should care,” she responded, but Jadeite was already shaking his head, gaze locked on the raven-haired girl staring at him dispassionately.  

 

“The eyes,” he murmured. They were absolutely the same in terms of appearance, but there was something undeniably wrong with them. “They’re not right. That’s… not her. That’s not my Mars.” He ran through a number of possible explanations, whispering them almost silently. Finally, one rang true. “It’s a simulacrum. You can wield their powers, but it’s not them. Their souls are in the crystals, beyond your reach. The gem just wanted a familiar form.”

 

“Does that mean you aren’t in pain, seeing her like this?”

 

“Oh, it hurts,” he admitted. “But it doesn’t matter. It just answers another question for my friends. Here’s one, though: why did Lead Crow claim I was responsible for Seiren’s death? I wounded her after she killed Mars, but she made it out alive.”

 

“I killed her. She proved less than capable; no one claiming the title of Senshi should be wounded by a magician’s cheap trick.”

 

He laughed coldly. “I’m not much of a magician, in that sense, but I’ll take it. What about Lead Crow? She did what you demanded of her. She brought me here on your orders.”

 

“She should never have needed to be told, let alone kept from killing you. She knew I’d treat with anyone willing. I have no interest in servants who cannot follow simple instructions.”

 

“That’s just callous. She didn’t want someone who hurt her friend to survive. That’s all.”

 

“Real warriors do not need friends.”

 

There was another laugh, but where the first had been cold, this was the most amused sound he’d made since Mars’ death. “You’re going to lose. Thanks for letting us know.” Mars’ copy snapped the bone in his upper arm, but he was beyond caring. “You can’t beat Sailor Moon with that attitude. You’ll see the pity in her eyes as you fail, and I just wish I’d be there to see it.”

 

That finally broke Galaxia’s composure. She nodded to her slave, and the warrior set to work, breaking bones, digging a fiery blade into his muscles and leaving horrible burns on his fair skin. He just chuckled, the chilling sound filling the void until the golden Senshi shrieked and tore out his Star Seed. She then destroyed the fake Mars just to see the crushed look in his dying eyes as they both dissolved into fragments of light.

 

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Sailor Moon all but collapsed. They’d seen everything; an image had appeared in front of them mere seconds after Jadeite’s disappearance. She wanted to go after him, but the others kept her from using the Silver Crystal and she’d only been able to watch him suffer. Zoisite, who had linked his mind to Jadeite’s in hopes of helping, had winced every time his friend was wounded. When he tried to remotely heal some of the damage, Jadeite had gently forced him out. Now he was fading with the image, but when it was almost gone the view snapped into focus again. 

 

Galaxia stared out at them. “Greetings, Sailor Moon,” she said icily. “I hope the spy you sent was as informative as he believed he was.”

 

“I didn’t send him,” the Moon Senshi protested immediately. “I never wanted this.”

 

“Whether you did or not, it is done. I should thank you, though. If not for his desperate need to help you, I would never have known these men of yours are nearly as potent as Sailor Senshi. He added his own friends to my list of targets.”

 

“If you’re after me, just get it over with.”

 

A terrifying smile spread over her severely beautiful features. “Oh, no. I want to see you break first. I want to watch as you lose everybody you love one at a time, until you are all alone and begging me to end it so you can stop suffering. You lean on them. You will not fight without their support. I was almost tempted to let this go, since the man proved informative, but I cannot have you think you can cross me without consequences.”

 

The image shifted, and Sailor Moon shrieked a warning. Pluto was standing at a console in Charon Castle with her back to them. Maybe she heard it, or maybe her time guarding the past and future had left her prepared for her coming death. She turned sharply, raising her Garnet Rod to summon a shield, but she wasn’t fast enough. Light flashed from Galaxia’s bracers, and Pluto crumpled without a sound. Her face was calm, accepting, as she faded.

 

“Stop,” she begged. “Please. I’ll do anything. If you want the Silver Crystal, I’ll give it to you. Don’t hurt them anymore.”

 

“Too little, too late, Sailor Moon. I do not care if you knew what your ‘friend’ planned, but he came for you and insulted me. I am not inclined to generosity today.”

 

“But she’s only a child,” she said, already knowing what Galaxia intended to do. “You’ve proven she can’t stop you on her own if you could take down Pluto so easily. Just let her come home. I can make sure she never tries to fight again.”

 

“As much as I like seeing you beg, I am enjoying this entirely too much. The girl was already doomed. You just sped her to her end.”

 

Sailor Moon wanted to save her friend, but it was like she’d been paralyzed. She couldn’t move, relying on Kunzite’s support to stay upright. She could barely breathe. 

 

The image shifted again. Saturn, sensitive to the rhythms of life and death, had felt the ends of Jupiter, Jadeite, and Pluto. The close ties between the allies ensured it. She stood in the center of Titan’s throne room, Silence Glaive at the ready, and met Galaxia with her head high. 

 

“Whoever you are, you’ve committed many crimes in your lust for power, not the least of which is the murder of countless sister Senshi and the people and worlds under their protection. By all rights I should kill you and be done with it.”

 

“But you will not do so? Why? Out of some misguided sense of morality? Oh, I know. You want me to repent and beg for mercy.”

 

“No. I won’t kill you because I can’t.” She lowered the weapon. “You’ve grown beyond my skill, at least for now. If I was older, stronger, I would end you and never think twice, but I lack the power to overwhelm the stolen magic you’ve accumulated. If you’ve come to take my Sailor Crystal, you might as well get it over with. I’m not going to fight you.”

 

“So selfless,” she mocked. “So stupid. This is precisely why one of your friends died tonight. He was determined to help others and gave no thought to his own wellbeing.”

 

“Jadeite made the best choice he could in a terrible situation.” Taking a deep breath, she cast the Silence Glaive aside. “Whenever you’re ready.”

 

Galaxia tilted her head to one side. “This display is nauseating. I could leave you here, knowing you chose the coward’s way out, but it wouldn’t be conducive to my plans.” 

 

Sailor Moon couldn’t look. She closed her eyes as the terrible magic shred the fabric of Saturn’s being, reducing her to bits of light and a gleaming crystal in Galaxia’s hand. After a heavy pause, the villainous Senshi turned their way.

 

“Your protective barrier is gone.” The words were like a knife through their collective consciousness. There was nothing keeping her from launching an all-out invasion. “My people can come and go as they please. Your time is running out.”

 

“Then you should at least give us a fighting chance!” Venus protested. “Stop picking us off and face us head-on!”

 

She laughed. “I am already winning, so why should I forfeit the advantage? You will come to me eventually, when most of you are gone and you have grown too desperate to find another way. I just have to watch and wait.”

 

“What is your goal?” Kunzite asked in his stoic way, so composed anyone who didn’t know him would think he was entirely unaffected by the deaths they’d just witnessed – Jupiter, Jadeite, Pluto, and Saturn, all gone. “Why are you doing this?”

 

“That is no concern of yours. Sailor Moon will be the only one to learn the truth as she faces the end. I will tell her as I take the Silver Crystal and watch her light finally go out.”

 

Before they could argue or say anything else, the image broke, leaving only a faint lingering scent of magic and death. Sailor Moon fainted in the oldest general’s arms. The others stood in stony silence, frightened to come face to face with the very real possibility of defeat.

 

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“Should we really be using Tuxedo Kamen-sama’s apartment when she’s like this?” Venus asked softly. “It could just make things worse.”

 

“Perhaps, but this place is more thoroughly warded than any of our other residences since it was done with both crystals. Despite the Golden Crystal having been taken, the spell sank into the earth itself and it will endure while she exists to steady it,” Kunzite replied. “It also has no personal possessions to reveal our identities.”

 

Nephrite was gone. Losing Jupiter and Jadeite had been too much, and he’d walked away. He needed a chance to grieve. They’d all been through something beyond endurance, but Jupiter was part of his soul. The Starlights, Uranus and Neptune had accompanied them and adjourned in the living room after Sailor Moon was settled in the master bedroom. The apartment was so empty it was like Mamoru had never lived there, despite having been his for three years.

 

“Enough is enough,” Fighter said finally, looking at her team. “We can’t keep pushing them out. They need all the information we can give them.”

 

Healer was about to argue, but the protest died on her lips. Even after the horrors they’d seen while Galaxia’s forces ravaged Kinmoku, her attacks had never been so deliberately cruel before. She swallowed. “Fine. What do you want us to do?”

 

“Tell them anything you can. Sailor Moon is our best shot at finding the princess now.”

 

“Princess?” Zoisite repeated, cutting off Healer’s potential reply. “Our princess?”

 

Fighter shook her head. “We’re looking for the princess of our world. She was injured and went into hiding during the attack. We need to find her.”

 

“So your entire planet’s fighting force abandoned it,” Uranus said coldly. “Is this story supposed to be inspiring some sort of faith in you?”

 

“Say what you want to me or Maker,” Fighter interjected quickly, “but don’t go after Healer. She lost too much because of Galaxia already.”

 

Neptune laid a hand on her partner’s shoulder. “Enough. We’ve seen what Galaxia is capable of, so we can’t judge them for trying to protect their planet’s only chance of recovering.”

 

Like Healer, Uranus was in a combative mood, but she managed to bite back her rage and nod. No one commented on the way her hands shook. “Okay. Tell us what you know. All of it.”

 

“It’s not much,” Maker cautioned. “With only four warriors, one of whom isn’t trained, we weren’t ready to fight her. She decimated the population within a week.”

 

“But you saw her. She didn’t just work through her puppets.”

 

“Not until the end,” Fighter said quietly. “She came to gloat, like she did today. Most of our people were already gone. We were trapped and she was about to kill us.”

 

“You got away somehow.”

 

“We’re shooting stars, and the person we follow was elsewhere. It was automatic, not something we set out to do. At that point we’d resigned ourselves to our fate.”

 

Healer took a deep breath and began. “I was the first to realize we were under attack. I felt lights dying – normal magic users aren’t as interesting to her as Senshi, but we’re harder to take out so she generally starts there. I rallied the others, but by then phages were everywhere. People died left and right, and Princess Kakyuu was injured when she was swarmed by almost a dozen. She managed to escape, but we kept fighting. We didn’t want to give up our home.”

 

“Then what?” Venus asked as the three of them looked away, clearly upset. 

 

“It was bad,” Maker said, picking up the narrative when she saw that Healer couldn’t. “The phages were multiplying exponentially, and none of us can change them back. We killed as many as we could, but they just made more and there are only three of us.”

 

Fighter continued. “Galaxia can see through glamours, so when we tried powering down and slipping away like that, she found us. Healer had lost her pair-bond during the fighting, and she was almost catatonic from the shock. We were cornered.”

 

“But?” Kunzite prompted gently. 

 

“But Princess Kakyuu wasn’t done yet,” Healer answered. “She called us. It was enough to snap me out of the worst of it, and without thinking we answered. She’s here somewhere, and we’ve been searching for her ever since. Japan is just our latest stop.”

 

“What do you know about her servants?” Neptune asked.

 

“They’re weak,” Fighter replied. “They have the powers of whatever Senshi they killed, but to a lesser extent. They lack our healing and durability, and any skills particular to us as people don’t transfer. The problem is that Galaxia can remake them as many times as it takes.”

 

Kunzite studied them, tapping his fingers on his leg. “The soldiers are nothing. As you say, they are weak and easily disposed of. We need to understand Sailor Galaxia and her goals.”

 

“I don’t know how much we can add,” Maker replied. 

 

“There’s one thing,” Fighter said, surprising them. “The Light of Hope.”

 

Healer scoffed. “It’s a myth. No one has even a shred of proof that such a thing exists.”

 

“A lot of people in this world still think of magic as a myth. Our princess believed it.”

 

“And look where that got us!” the silver-haired girl snapped. “You know what Galaxia said. If she hadn’t found out we were going to fight her, she wouldn’t have come yet.”

 

“You were the only ones left, except us,” Sailor Moon said from the door to Mamoru’s room. Her arms were crossed over her stomach like she was trying to keep herself from flying to pieces. Venus hurried to her side, but the Moon Senshi just ignored her. “You were always her next target. She wouldn’t have faced such a large united force until she was sure we were alone. She didn’t want help to come.”

 

“Maybe,” Maker said quietly, “but I wonder if Princess Kakyuu was right. There might be something out there she fears.”

 

“Probably. It isn’t anyone here; Galaxia has us right where she wants us. She isn’t totally confident, though. She’s not invulnerable.” The blonde looked at their much-reduced group. “I know we have a lot to face, but not now. Everyone should go rest. Fighter? Can we talk?”

 

The other girl blinked but nodded. The team frowned. After a pause, Venus, the Outers and the Shitennou filed out. Healer and Maker hung back, not wanting to separate. Fighter just smiled encouragingly and waved. They exchanged dark looks but did as she said. 

 

“Tell me everything you can,” Sailor Moon ordered quietly. “We’re running out of time.”

 

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Haruka paced, a hurricane in a too-small space. Michiru stood by, pale and silent, staring at a picture of Hotaru and Setsuna on the mantle. Finally, she looked into her Deep Aqua Mirror. She couldn’t make out the image; it jumped and trembled too much for her to focus. 

 

“It won’t stop shaking,” she murmured.

 

The blonde’s harried steps halted abruptly. After a drawn-out sigh, she turned and moved to face her partner. Their hands met and the mirror went still. “We’ll find a way to bring them back,” Haruka promised, her voice little more than a whisper in the wind. Neither of them believed it. “We’ll see them again.”

 

“You seem so angry,” Michiru said.

 

Embarrassed, she broke away. “We lost half our family today. Of course I’m angry.”

 

“It’s not just that.” Her gaze went back to the Talisman. “You’re scared, and it’s making you mad.” Haruka hesitated. “Just let it out. I’m the only one who can hear you.”

 

She broke. “They just killed her like she was nothing! She never even had a chance to face them! I don’t want that to be me!”

 

“You mean Jupiter?” Michiru asked. 

 

“I know part of her never forgave us for that night in her garden, but she was a sweet kid. We were so much alike. She didn’t deserve what happened to her!”

 

“So you’d rather go out fighting, instead of something quick?”

 

“It wasn’t just the speed. We basically left her alone because we had to face the threat. She died without one of us even holding her hand.” Haruka took a deep breath. “I’d rather see it coming. Let me face it as a soldier instead of being gunned down like a civilian in a firefight.”

 

“We lost Setsuna and Hotaru tonight.” Michiru’s voice was slow, considering. “Jupiter, Jadeite. The death toll is out of control.”

 

“We have to do something.”

 

“We will.” She looked at the mirror again, grief giving way to bitter resolution. “Oh, we will. Look at this, Haruka.”

 

Once she deciphered what Michiru had already seen, Haruka’s eyes turned grim and her mouth set in a firm line. “That’ll work.”

 

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She dreamed that night.

 

It was Galaxia’s base, not the outpost Jadeite had been taken to, though she couldn’t say how she knew. A massive, glittering crystal palace stood by an oceanic void. It dwarfed the castle and shone with its own eerie light. After a second’s confusion, she recognized the place. Galaxia was holding court at the Galaxy Cauldron, the birthplace of stars and every life that ever was or would be. It was the center of the universe itself. 

 

The vision shifted to the far side of the Cauldron, to a hooded figure there. Usagi’s first thought was that she was seeing Galaxia and she tried to leave, to wake up, afraid of what would happen if the warrior realized she was being watched. Before she could break free, she realized the figure was petite and wore white under her heavy cloak. A wave of calm radiated from her. 

 

In the newly descended peace, the mystery woman knelt by the badly depleted Cauldron. “You need to stop,” she whispered. “This isn’t the right way to seek your vengeance on me. You are my sister and I love you, but I can’t allow your return.”

 

A shadow stirred in the glowing depths, blotting out a few of the stars still growing in the nurturing warmth. Usagi had the sudden, horrifying thought that her daughter-to-be might have been one of them. She held her breath until it passed, unable to relax without knowing those new lights had survived. Finally their gleam reemerged. She sighed in relief. 

 

The shrouded figure shook her head, responding to a voice her watcher hadn’t heard. “Galaxia doesn’t want your freedom. She only wants power and control. She wants more than the fates chose for her. You gave a dangerous gift to a megalomaniac.”

 

They both heard the response this time. A chilling laugh broke free from the Cauldron and filled the empty space. Usagi shuddered and tried to block it out, but she failed. It continued to pour through her despite her efforts. A sharp clap rang out, cutting through the terrible sound, and the laughter stopped.

 

“Enough,” the stranger said, drawing her pale arms back under her cloak. “You don’t want to be reasonable, so it will only ever be war between us. Hopefully this will be the last.”

 

The vision faded on those ominous words. The last thing Usagi saw as she woke up was a pair of big, crystal blue eyes. 

 

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Emerging into wakefulness was too sudden and sharp. Usagi gasped as she sat up, her mind desperately trying to reconnect with whatever she had just seen, but it was no use. Whether it had been a mere dream or a hint at something terrifyingly real, she was unsure. 

 

“Chibi?” 

 

After a second’s pause, she turned. With all the fighting and death, she’d almost forgotten about the little girl in her house. None of Zoisite’s searches had led them to her family, so Usagi had been content to let the toddler into their lives. She hadn’t been any trouble. 

 

Fighting – death – the words broke over her like a wave. She choked as new visions, real ones, flooded her. Mercury was gone, taken right in front of her eyes. Mars, whose light went out because someone who should’ve loved her let her be tortured instead, leaving her weak when she had to fight. Jupiter, with no one to say goodbye. Jadeite tried to help and died for it. Pluto and Saturn were killed just as coldly. And Mamoru… he’d been gone before they even knew a fight had come. A sob shook itself loose, and another, until she thought she would drown in them. 

 

Jadeite had saved her from just such an occurrence before, and without him there to keep feeding the spell, she was defenseless. 

 

“Chibi.” Tiny hands patted her cheeks, absently wiping away the tears. A weight settled in her lap as little arms went around her neck and into her long hair. “Chibi?”

 

Usagi wanted Chibiusa. Having her baby would be an assurance that everything would work out. She would know she’d get Mamoru back and be able to rebuild the world. It wasn’t Chibiusa, though. It was a stranger, a child too small to stand a chance without her. That meant something when she’d failed everyone else. Instead of fighting the sobs, she succumbed, letting the girl hold on as she poured out her pain. Once she relaxed into her pillows, the little girl was gone. She was disappointed, but she knew children that age had short attention spans. 

 

“Chibi!”

 

Usagi sat up again. Chibi Chibi had taken up residence on the end of her bed, an incense burner in her lap. A soothing smell drifted out, and she felt her tense muscles start to loosen. 

 

“Where did you get that?” she asked. “Mama’s room?” The child looked at her blankly. Finally, she just smiled and shrugged. It wasn’t like Chibi Chibi could answer the question. “Do you want to sleep in here with me?”

 

Without bothering to respond, Chibi Chibi set the burner on the table in the middle of the room and dove under the covers. She was asleep almost immediately, both hands entwined with one of Usagi’s pigtails. Scooting over to make sure there was enough room, the blonde wrapped her arms around Chibi Chibi and fell into a deep, dreamless sleep. 

 

88888888

 

Minako shut off the TV and threw the remote with a shriek. Kunzite, just coming into the room, snatched it before it could hit the wall and set it aside, joining her on the sofa. She tried to hide her face in his shirt, but he gently edged her chin up until their eyes met. The general just waited, knowing she would explain what was bothering her if only to fill the silence. 

 

“They commented on Jupiter’s death like it was nothing. An idiot with a camera caught the whole thing before they were evacuated.” She flinched as she felt the tears come, but she pressed on despite that. “At least they didn’t get the Galaxia bit.”

 

“You know they do not understand. That is not what causes your tears. Mina, you lost some of your closest friends today. You need not pretend for my sake.”

 

Minako looked away. “I’m not – you already lost the person who matters most to you, so I shouldn’t complain. At least I still have Usagi-chan.”

 

“I am with the person who matters most. Yes, I grieve the loss of my prince, but you are irreplaceable. Endymion-sama is like water or food, necessary, but one can survive the loss for a time. You, Mina, are my air.”

 

The blonde let his words linger for a long time before replying. “She’s going to want me soon. Next, probably. If she wants to break Usagi-chan, I’m the obvious choice.”

 

Kunzite lifted her hand and brushed a kiss across the knuckles, a courtly gesture of an age long gone. “If so, I will do my best to face it with you.”

 

“I couldn’t ask.”

 

“You do not have to.”

 

“I don’t think we can win,” she whispered. “I know Jadeite said we could, but I don’t see it. We’ve never faced something like this before. Part of me wants to beg you to run away with me, as far and as fast as we can, so that we don’t have to die, but I can’t.”

 

“If you asked it of me, I would go. It might only be a temporary solution, but without Mamoru-sama you are my world. I will follow you wherever you go.”

 

“But I can’t,” Minako repeated. “Because I  _ am _ her guard, and her friend, and I can’t let them get away with what they did to the people we love. It’s so hard, Kunzite. I want to run and I have to stay and fight when all I can do is try not to give up and cry.”

 

He nodded in acknowledgement before running his hands into her hair and kissing her without any of the reticence that shadowed most of his displays of affection. She knew he was saying goodbye in his own way, unable to admit out loud that they might die at any time. He was trying to let her know he loved her and that even if she fell she wouldn’t be alone.

 

For a minute, she managed to turn off the awful soundtrack of despair and enjoy the embrace, but it couldn’t last. She needed air; she needed space to breathe before she came apart at the seams and really did choose to abandon best her friend. Mina tore free and ran out of his house, pausing only long enough to snatch up her purse before she disappeared down the street. He let her go, not knowing what else he could possibly do.

 

88888888

 

It was a weekend, so Minako was surprised to find more than a dozen girls in the chapel at Rei’s school. Three were crying. A handful more stared blankly at the altar. The others milled around, not knowing what to say to the grievers but hoping the sacred space would be safe. 

 

“Can I help you, child?” 

 

Mina turned to find a wizened nun. She managed to work up a smile. “I don’t think so. I just wanted to… I don’t even know.”

 

“If this place brings you any peace of mind, that’s enough.” The old lady walked away to speak to the next parishioner. 

 

She had been raised Buddhist, but she’d spent enough time on sets and with Rei to know how the church worked to an extent. Once she reached the candles at the front, she lit seven to commemorate her fallen friends. It seemed like such a little thing, but afterwards she felt a bit better. The priest, having finished with one of the crying girls, walked up next to her.

 

“I don’t think I’ve seen you in here before, miss, but you seem sad. Is something wrong?”

 

If Mina’s laugh was a little harsh or bitter, he made no comment, so she decided to reply. “It’s probably the same thing that upset them. People are getting hurt and disappearing and there’s nothing I can do to stop it.”

 

He looked at her candles. “Have you lost so many?”

 

She was crying again, despite her best efforts. “Yeah. I’ve known most of them for years; they were my best friends. I was even there for some of them, but I just… couldn’t…”

 

“Oh dear.” He ushered her over to one of the pews. “Normally I would tell you that the Lord works in mysterious ways, but this is rather outside what we were taught. I can say that they would not want you to suffer if they loved you as much as you clearly do them.”

 

“There was nothing I could do. I was right there and I was helpless.”

 

“That must be a difficult burden to bear, but you have to do what you can to ease the load. Like the candles you lit. It is often the little things that bring us peace, even if they seem insufficient to carry our grief. Do what seems right. Even if it is truly too little, too late, it may give you the strength to wipe away your tears and go on. Sometimes it’s our only way forward.”

 

Minako nodded slowly. “Thank you, Father. That helps.”

 

“You needn’t thank me for a handful of words, my girl. I only wish I could do more.”

 

“Sometimes it’s the little things,” she reminded. “I know what to do now.”

 

“Of course. God bless, child. I hope you have happier days ahead.”

 

“I will,” she murmured as left the church. “Or I’ll die trying.”

 

88888888

 

“This is madness,” Kunzite admonished through the communicator a few hours later. “You know we are not to go out in public alone.”

 

“You’re at work and it needs to be done. The world has to know what’s happening. We can’t expect the casualties to pile up like this without explanation.”

 

“You are risking your life.”

 

Her mouth set in a firm line. “It’s mine to risk. They’ll come for me whether I do this or not, so why shouldn’t I take the path that gives me a chance to help others? I need to make my life worthwhile, Kunzite. I don’t want to die regretting what could have been.”

 

He sighed. “It is not that I do not understand your motivations. I just worry that you are defying our protocols by going alone. You could get Zoisite to go. Will you not call him?”

 

“He’s still our best shot at finding the enemy’s weaknesses, so he needs to stay safe as long as possible. The base is warded so strongly Galaxia herself would have to fish him out, and she’s probably not ready to go to that extreme.”

 

“What about Uranus or Neptune?”

 

“I doubt they’d agree with my doing this. They usually don’t.”

 

“They would still see the sense in not letting you be there alone.” 

 

Venus glanced at the time. “It doesn’t matter. I’m not going to call them, and before you ask, Nephrite is busy right now.”

 

“The Starlights?”

 

“Unless you know something I don’t, I wouldn’t be able to find them.”

 

“Sailor Moon is aware of their identities. She would help.”

 

“She’d never betray that confidence. Stop trying to delay me and just accept it, Kunzite. I’m going to do this, and given the current circumstances it has to be alone.”

 

Another sigh came from the tiny speaker. “All right,” he acquiesced with a tired shrug, “but please be careful. No one would benefit from seeing you die on live television.”

 

She managed a smile for him. “Same goes for you, except the TV bit. I’ll see you later.” She shut the device before he could respond, not wanting to know if he could read the thoughts in her eyes. She didn’t think she’d make it home.

 

After taking a few seconds, Venus strode as confidently as she could through the station’s roof door and down the steps. As soon as someone saw her they ran off, doubtless going to tell Akiyama she was there. The girls found her tasteless and crass, but there was no doubt she got the story out there. It was what they needed, so her flaws could be overlooked.

 

Standing in the middle of their studio, she could almost feel the presence of her friends: the usually meek Mercury taking charge when they first made the arrangements, haughty Mars protecting her identity without having to be asked, brave Jupiter with her unbending will… Jadeite taking her place to ensure her safety, Zoisite guiding Mercury through before either of them knew who he was, Kunzite’s hand silently directing the whole thing. Venus decided that if she was lucky enough to live through the war, she would never set foot in that room again. 

 

“Sailor Venus,” Akiyama said shortly instead of bothering with things like greetings or other mundane pleasantries. “No escort today?”

 

“Everyone’s busy, so it’s just little old me.” She wished she could turn her uniform black for mourning, could cry and carry on like the sixteen year old she was, but instead she turned on her camera-perfect smile. “Whenever you’re ready, Akiyama-san.”

 

“Get a pack. It was a slow news night anyway, so you’ll be airing prime time.”

 

“Wonderful.”

 

She suffered through the ministrations of the friendly tech assistant they’d met before, and even managed to accept his condolences without letting her fragile composure break. Once the microphone was secured, she took the designated seat. All of them had done the same, one at a time. A crack ran through her resolution, but before she could run she felt a spreading warmth in her chest and knew Kunzite had sensed her distress and was comforting her. Her smile became a bit more real. 

 

The crew’s directions were little more than white noise in her ears, but Venus was ready when the camera started and Akiyama turned her cool stare her way. “I must say, Sailor Venus, this visit was most unexpected. We have not been graced with your presence in nearly a year.”

 

“We were at peace. After you talked to Mars, we fought the Dead Moon Circus and won, and for months it was quiet.”

 

“But?”

 

“But it’s never over, not really. Do you remember the flight that disappeared a while ago? That was the enemy’s opening volley. Things have only gotten worse since then.”

 

“So the attacks that have been occurring all over Tokyo have been the work of this new threat. What stance does the Senshi take regarding the death toll?”

 

Venus closed her eyes for a moment so they wouldn’t be able to see her tears. “We’re doing our best, but we’re outnumbered. The monsters used to be human, and they can make more of themselves. A battle that starts with one can explode in minutes. It’s a horrible cycle.”

 

“So what makes the monsters appear? Who is this new enemy, and what are they after?”

 

“It’s hard to explain, so bear with me. We’re fighting… other Senshi. Sort of. The details are more than you need right now, so I’ll just give you the simple version. The enemy uses fake Senshi as her servants to find the real ones and take our Sailor Crystals. The monsters are what people become if they try to take a Sailor Crystal but the victim doesn’t have one.”

 

“And if it attacks one of you, you die.”

 

“Yes,” she confirmed softly. “Jupiter was one of the most recent. We’ve been hit really badly by this so far. Pluto, Saturn, Mercury, Mars, and Jupiter are already gone. So is Tuxedo Kamen-sama and one of the other men. We’re losing, Akiyama-san.”

 

That broke through Akiyama’s professional veneer. “Losing?!”

 

“The enemy wants our Sailor Crystals. We don’t know why, but we do know that kind of power is dangerous even in bits. All of them combined would be unimaginable. Anything would be possible at that point. Mars showed you what she could do with fire, not even trying. Think of what would happen if someone had access to just the five of us. Healing, spirit, fire, ice, water, storms, plants, metal, love… It would be pure chaos. Factor in every other power out there and you’ve just conjured up an enemy we don’t know how to fight.”

 

“Even with these mystery allies you’re so careful not to discuss?”

 

Venus shook her head. “I won’t tell you who they are any more than the others, but they’re not Senshi. They’re strong in their own right, but we represent the highest powers. They can and do help, but it’s not enough.”

 

“Have you ever considered giving yourselves up?”

 

The answering silence was painfully deafening. “Excuse me?” she said finally. Her tone was low and even, but there was no mistaking the threat in the words. 

 

“If this enemy is looking for you, like you said, couldn’t you just give them what they want so the deaths stop?”

 

“You… are asking teenagers to die for you. You understand that, right? I’m only sixteen. And Sailor Moon. Uranus and Neptune are seventeen. We’re still legally children, and you just  _ asked  _ us to  _ die _ for you.”

 

“You didn’t have to be Sailor Senshi, and it would be for the greater good.”

 

“You don’t know anything about the greater good! I just told you how dangerous these crystals can be individually, never mind all at once, and you want us to hand them over! You have no idea what you’re saying!”

 

Now Akiyama was the one who sounded cool and composed with an underlying menace. “I’m saying that people are dying while you protect your precious magic.”

 

It was all Venus could do to keep from leaping out of the chair and killing the woman. As it was, her fingers dug into the wood armrests, nearly splintering them. “Don’t you understand?! If we die, it won’t be one city suffering civilian casualties. It will be the  _ end of the world _ !”

 

Silence again, even darker and more painful than before. “Explain.”

 

“Akiyama-san, right now you should count yourself lucky I don’t believe in using our powers on humans because I am trying  _ really _ hard not to hurt you. Don’t give try to give me orders, because I do  _ not _ answer to you.”

 

_ Think of the people, Venus. They deserve the truth even if Akiyama is… unkind. _

 

The blonde took several deep breaths before continuing. “We’ve told you all the power of a planet is embodied in its corresponding Senshi’s Sailor Crystal. If that Senshi dies, the planet is cut off from the crystal. Tuxedo Kamen-sama was the keeper of the Earth’s, and we already lost him. Sailor Moon had a bond with him, which gives her a degree of control, but it’s a stopgap. It won’t hold forever. If we don’t get the Golden Crystal back, the Earth will die, taking us with it.”

 

More silence. She was starting to hate it, because silence made it too easy for her mind to churn out her worst memories and new, horrifying thoughts. Akiyama pursed her lips before speaking. “I… apologize for my earlier comments, Sailor Venus. They were ill-considered.”

 

They hadn’t been considered at all, and she was so angry that the rage was threatening to choke her, but Princess Venus had been a diplomat as well as a warrior. Her modern incarnation summoned that composure and forced herself to be gracious. “Thank you.”

 

“So what can be done to stop this enemy?”

 

“We don’t know. One of our teammates said it was possible, but he didn’t have a chance to say how before we… lost him. It’ll come down to Sailor Moon, of course, but we don’t have the answers any more than you do now.”

 

She stopped abruptly as shock, grief and fear raced through her gut and up her spine. He had been on alert, possibly fighting, before, but it hadn't seemed particularly dangerous. Holding her breath, she hoped that would be it. She had just begun to relax and breathe again when it was joined by terrible pain, strong enough to knock the air from her lungs. “Kunzite,” she gasped, staggering to her feet. “I have to go. Now.”

 

“Wait,” Akiyama protested, getting up as well. “We’re not done.”

 

Blue eyes flashed as her rage regained its potency. “Get out of my way before this gets ugly.” The Holy Blade was in her hand, and she had no memory of summoning it. 

 

“You owe us more information than that!”

 

Where first her anger had been fiery, now it was sheer ice. Venus’ power was poised with terrible intent. “Move aside or I will destroy everything you love.”

 

It sounded like an empty threat to Akiyama, who had no idea just how capable of doing so Venus was, but the sheer malice in her tone was enough to make her take several large steps back. It gave Venus the opening to slip by at Senshi speed, bursting from the studio, racing to the roof and leaping across the buildings with only one thought in mind.

 

_ Kunzite, Kunzite, Kunzite. _

 

88888888

 

It was hardly a surprise to realize Minako had lied to him when Masato walked into his office mere moments after the impetuous blonde cut the connection. Keiji slowly set the device aside before reaching for the remote that controlled the small television in the corner. If she was approaching them for her interview, he would be able to see her soon enough. 

 

“What brings you here?” the older man asked as his friend sank into the visitor’s chair.

 

Tired, Masato scrubbed his hands over his face. “I wanted to apologize for last night. I bailed on you guys when I should’ve stayed. What if the Starlights hadn’t been safe?”

 

“You did what was best for you. There is no shame in that.”

 

The brunette sighed. “Maybe. I don’t know anymore. Even the stars aren’t helping.”

 

“You have not heard anything?”

 

“I’m hearing less all the time. After I left, I walked for hours trying to reach the ones that usually comfort me, but there was nothing. Most of them have gone silent. I finally remembered what caused the voices, and that just made it hurt so much worse.”

 

“Oh?”

 

“Hyperion told me a long time ago that it was the voices of all the great cosmic entities speaking to me.”

 

“Like planets,” Keiji said slowly, putting the pieces together. “Not just stars. Jupiter’s voice would have been the most constant, given your bond, and now it is gone.”

 

“Pretty much.”

 

Akiyama and Venus finally appeared on screen, and the lawyer increased the volume enough for them to hear it. Nothing was said in the meantime, at least out loud, though he did reach out to his soulmate when her distress nearly overwhelmed her common sense. Things looked heated enough that he wondered if he should join her just to offer support. 

 

That option was wrenched from them quite suddenly when a cacophony of screams swept through the outer office. He looked at his subordinate and nodded, and both made the transition to warrior form as Kunzite activated the alarm on his communicator. They had no way to know if help would come, but they could not leave the civilians unprotected. 

 

Kunzite teleported ahead, immediately closing with the first phage at hand. He couldn’t heal, and after the Dark Kingdom he couldn’t bear the idea of killing a human for convenience, but he would do his best to disable it. Nephrite, sliding in a moment later, made the same choice. With brutal efficiency they cut hamstrings, broke bones and did their damnedest to stay alive. 

 

A high-pitched laugh filled the room, almost covering the moans of pain and shrieks of anger from the downed phages. Keiji had been sensible enough to create an evacuation plan after the first major assault in case of emergencies and had his employees practice it religiously, so once the warriors had appeared to serve as a distraction they’d gotten away. Knowing they wouldn’t find a friend, both men straightened to face this new threat. 

 

“So pointlessly noble,” the newcomer said with a smirk. She was sitting on the edge of a desk, kicking her legs like a child. Her uniform was black, and the points of her hairstyle and the bells suggested she had catlike attributes. “They won’t be here in time. Another fight broke out in the middle of town. Your precious Sailor Moon and those cowardly Starlights are out there trying to mop it up with the Outer pair. Your little blond friend hasn’t even left his cave.”

 

“There is still one,” Kunzite said coolly. 

 

“But she’s busy too, isn’t she?” the strange Senshi said in delight. “Talking on television, of all things, while her pair-bond looks death in the face.”

 

“You will not be the death of me.”

 

She pouted, heightening her youthful appearance. “How rude. Why does everyone refuse to take me seriously? I’m a warrior too, you know.”

 

“You are a fraud.”

 

“Maybe.” She frowned. “But it should have been me, not Mau. She never deserved the crystal; she never wanted it like I did.”

 

“Mau?” Nephrite repeated, glancing at his leader. “As in…?”

 

“As in Luna and Artemis, yes,” she hissed. “Little traitors, joining another court when their place was with us. I already dealt with them.”

 

Kunzite’s hands hovered on the hilts of his swords, ready to go on the attack at any time. Nephrite kept his spear up as well. The black-clad warrior sighed and fired a beam. Both men leapt to the side, not realizing she’d meant it for someone else until a new phage was erupting behind them. Nephrite was too close, and he couldn’t get away in time. The eldest Shitennou’s swords whistled through the air a moment too late, crippling the beast as his friend’s Star Seed came free and floated to the false Senshi. 

 

He felt himself balancing on the precipice of insanity and tried to rein it in, but he had suffered so much that the draw of battle madness was too strong to resist. The world faded as he leapt forward, all whirling blades and promises of destruction. His sword going through her chest was enough to ground him in reality, and he wished it hadn’t when the killing rage was replaced with unbearable agony. It hadn’t come from the cat-girl he’d just killed, but his vision was fading too fast for him to even try to locate the cause. The last thing he knew was a piercing scream.

 

88888888

 

The station was so close to his law offices that she thought she might make it. She even prayed she would, because as much as seeing him die would destroy her she didn’t want him to go alone like Jupiter had. Venus had never run so fast in her life.

 

And it was all for nothing.

 

By the time she arrived, all that was left were the last few sparks. His swords lay nearby, coated in blood. She dismissed hers and grabbed them instead, holding one close like a stuffed toy. The scream that had torn through her was all but forgotten, and mind-numbing grief filled her heart. Kneeling where he’d fallen, she sobbed in a way she hadn’t for longer than she could remember. It was painful, gasping and choking on tears that couldn’t come fast enough. There was no pretty trickle of perfect drops. There never would be again. If anything human had been there to hear it, they would have called her utterly broken. 

 

The wounded phages she disregarded entirely. Her focus never left his abandoned sword as the terrible sounds of a wounded soul echoed around her. 

 

“By all means, take your time.” Venus went still, tears cut off abruptly. It was a woman’s voice, low and smooth. Another fake. She’d thought he’d killed the one behind the attack. “I wanted to thank him for getting rid of Tin Nyanko, but I guess I waited too long after attacking. Oh dear, were you two very close?”

 

“Don’t ask a question you already know the answer to,” the blonde replied slowly as she got to her feet. This stranger was the one who’d taken her soulmate from her. She was willing to die herself if it meant obliterating his killer. 

 

The newcomer was taller than she was, in pink and blue with black accents. Magnificent blue butterfly wings fluttered behind her, swaying as the warrior shifted. She recognized the pattern from one of her diplomatic missions a lifetime ago. 

 

“You killed Sailor Cocoon.”

 

“Guilty. Aren’t you going to ask me why?”

 

“No. I don’t care. If you’re here to kill me, get it over with.”

 

“You’re ruining all my fun,” the Animamate said, pouting. “You’re supposed to cry and make threats, and try to escape the inevitable.”

 

There was no point, though. Kunzite’s earlier words about her being his air had been the truth. She’d chosen the strongest possible bond for them; she wouldn’t outlive him by long. Her only choice was whether or not to do something with the time she had. “I won’t. Do your worst.”

 

She sighed. “Oh, fine.”

 

That terrible beam shot out, and Venus chose that moment to act. As the light died down and she collapsed, a laugh just as terrible and broken as her tears slid free. “You lose.”

 

The Venus Crystal was gone, and her power with it, but she hadn’t needed it to eliminate her opponent. Kunzite’s sword, no longer in her grasp, was on the ground by the Animamate, who was staring at the empty space on her wrists that had been occupied by her bracelets. She fell to the ground, scrabbling for them, but the gold had been utterly ruined and their power was gone. The stranger was gone within seconds. 

 

Venus, though, suffered a terrible lingering. Her bond with Kunzite and the loss of her Sailor Crystal both pulled her toward the edge of oblivion, but her ties to her princess struggled to lead her away. It threatened to tear her apart entirely, but before it could the other blonde was there, a winged angel hovering above. 

 

“Sailor… Moon…”

 

“Shh,” the princess said gently, running trembling fingers through her final guardian’s hair. “It’s okay. You did your best. I’ll see you again soon.”

 

After a last shuddering breath, Venus was gone. 

 

88888888

 

The tears had run dry, and despite all the years wishing she was less of a crybaby it just felt horribly wrong. She owed Venus that much. She ought to cry, and the fact that she wasn’t was terrible. Could she call herself a friend like that?

 

Of her closest allies and best friends, Venus had been the last. She wouldn’t belittle the few she had left and claim they weren’t important, but they hadn’t been by her side since their earliest battles, hadn’t struggled with recollections of the Silver Millennium with her and shared the pain of losing loved ones to enemy control. 

 

She still had Uranus and Neptune, she told herself, trying to rally. And Zoisite, despite his distance. They had been with her for a long time, and even when they didn’t agree she trusted them implicitly. She couldn’t feel so strongly for the Starlights, but they were important too and while they hadn’t reached an agreement yet they were trying. 

 

One of the phages behind her chattered in pained indignation, and the sound drew Sailor Moon out of her maudlin reverie. There was still work to be done; she’d left her friends with the other attack when she felt the first death, and there were still phages to stop. She started to draw the Tiare, but something gave her pause. After a moment’s consideration, her wings opened again and she launched herself out the window she’d used to enter before going up and up and up, until the entire city was shining beneath her. 

 

The Silver Moon Crystal flared and burned in her hand when she summoned it, growing brighter still as it was joined by the Holy Grail. The two great powers combined lit the sky until it was lighter than a midsummer’s day. Taking a deep breath, she concentrated.

 

With the entire city in her grasp, she was able to pick out the viruses of phages and false Senshi all over Tokyo. Using great care, she extinguished them one by one, destroying soldiers and returning monsters to their human guises. When the last bit of infection was gone, she turned her gaze skyward. She was a miniature sun, too bright to be looked at, but great strands of power were starting to crisscross the sky, weaving together and strengthening each other until a massive dome took shape. She began the final push, drawing on the few remaining allies she had, but she realized in a moment’s sharp panic she was falling short. 

 

A new radiance appeared in the glowing net, rich red-gold against her pink and silver. Another woman was at her back, holding her steady, but all of her strength was dedicated to building the barrier and she couldn’t even turn to see who it was. The last piece knotted itself into the magical tapestry as she lost consciousness, wings no longer able to support her weight. The mystery woman only held her close with a whispered prayer as they descended as gently as a feather on a breeze. 


	3. Part 3

“Chibi?”

 

Usagi’s answering blink was terribly languorous, but anything more than that was beyond her. She was completely out of energy. “What? Chibi Chibi? Where…?”

 

“You are safe,” a gentle new voice promised. “My Senshi tell me this place is protected, and that you have been here before while unwell. It seemed like a wise choice until we knew what was happening or could locate your guardians.”

 

An arm slid under her shoulders and helped her into an upright position, and the blonde finally opened her eyes. Seiya was right next to her, Chibi Chibi hovering nearby. The voice had come from the other direction, though. She turned slowly, relying on Seiya for support, to take in the strange woman sitting on the edge of the bed. 

 

“…Princess?” she said. It was only a guess, but given what little information she had it was quite likely indeed. It took a great deal of effort to force another word. “Fighter’s?”

 

“Yes. My name is Kakyuu. I am the princess of the Tankei Kingdom of Kinmoku and guardian of its Sailor Crystal. The Starlights are my sworn protectors.” She inclined her head a little. “Thank you for your kindness to them, Princess Serenity of the Silver Millennium.”

 

Her head spun, but she managed to find a bit of strength, enough to ask a few questions. “Where are we? Mamo-chan’s apartment?”

 

“It’s the apartment we came to after we saw Galaxia,” Seiya answered. Chibi Chibi made a sound and ran around the bed to Kakyuu, climbing into her lap. “I don’t know what happened, except suddenly Princess Kakyuu was there holding you. We weren’t sure where else to go.”

 

“Healer? Maker?”

 

“They’re out looking for your friends. Uranus and Neptune left after the light show, but we had to find our princess.”

 

“That was an impressive thing you did,” Kakyuu said quietly. “I have never seen the like. Your Silver Crystal is as powerful as the legends say.”

 

“It wasn’t just the crystal,” Usagi answered. She was still exhausted, and the conversation was rapidly consuming what little energy she had. Noticing, Seiya eased her back down. “I used the Grail too. As it is, I nearly failed.”

 

“I am only glad I arrived in time. A display of power like that might have had terrible consequences had it not succeeded as you meant it to.”

 

“I don’t even know what I wanted it to do. It was just a way of defying Galaxia, I guess. ‘You’ve taken my friends, but I’m not giving up.’ That’s what I wanted to say to her. It’ll keep her out for a while, so we’ll have a chance to rest.”

 

“You do not think she will come for you while you are weak?”

 

She shook her head with a faint laugh. “She wants it to be personal. It won’t feel like a victory to her while I’m like this, so she’ll wait.”

 

“Now will you tell us where you’ve been all this time?!” Seiya demanded, irate. “We’ve looked everywhere, then you were suddenly in front of us with Sailor Moon in your arms!”

 

“Oh, Fighter,” she sighed. “I had to stay hidden until I was healed. I heard your songs, though. Thank you for looking so diligently. I wanted to go to you so badly, but it wasn’t safe.”

 

“But where were you?!”

 

Eyes flicking between the three other people in the room, Usagi figured it out. “It was the incense burner. Chibi Chibi brought it to me when I was having a nightmare, and the smell was so soothing it helped me sleep. You have the same scent.”

 

Princess Kakyuu nodded. “Chibi Chibi found me unconscious at a park shortly before you met her, Sailor Moon. She offered to hide me until I could reach my Starlights.”

 

Seiya turned wounded eyes Usagi’s way. “You knew where she was and didn’t tell me?”

 

The blonde shook her head. “I just figured it out. It’s not like Chibi Chibi could tell me.”

 

“The child would have been able to reveal my location. She is a Senshi, after all.”

 

“What?!” she and Seiya demanded simultaneously. 

 

88888888

 

Yaten muttered curses as he prowled the streets of Juuban. It was the area where they most often encountered Sailor Moon’s team, so it seemed like the best place to search, but while he could identify them through their glamours, it was a large city. 

 

Finally he recognized one of the people he was looking for. The long honey-colored hair helped, but it was the air of power that was the true giveaway. Yaten’s problem became trying to get his attention before he was swallowed by the mass of humanity all around them. “Hey! Boy!”

 

They’d never had contact in their civilian forms, and rarely as warriors. Yaten pushed through the crowd, but the man seemed to be in a hurry and kept pulling further ahead. 

 

“Oh, for the love of – Zoisite!”

 

Zane ground to a stop and spun, shocked to hear his other name. He didn’t expect to see one of the pop stars who went to school with Usagi struggling to reach him. Taking in the newcomer’s appearance and the use of his secret identity, he was able to make the connection himself. He took Yaten’s arm and pulled him back the way they came until they reached a dark alley between two old office buildings that had rental signs in their windows. 

 

“I do not go around shouting your true identity in public, so I would prefer that you show consideration and offer me the same courtesy, Healer.”

 

“I couldn’t think of any other way to get your attention. You were too far away,” Yaten said irritably. “The princess sent me to find you and your friends.”

 

“And why would she do that? She knows how to reach us should the need arise.”

 

Frustrated, the silver-haired teen shook his head. “No, not Sailor Moon.  _ My _ princess, Princess Kakyuu of Kinmoku. We finally found her; she’s with Sailor Moon now.”

 

Zane regarded him warily. “I see. And what prompted this discovery?”

 

“Your princess did some big magic thing over the city.”

 

“Yes, my equipment detected as much.”

 

“Well, did your  _ equipment _ mention that she had help? Apparently it was too much, so Princess Kakyuu saved her. They’re at the warded apartment we met in before.”

 

“Thank you for letting me know. I will fetch Sailor Moon at once.”

 

“No, that’s…” Yaten sighed. “Princess Kakyuu wants to see everyone about something. Do you know where Uranus and Neptune are?”

 

“No, but I will contact them and ask that they meet us at the prince’s apartment. I can be there momentarily, so you may return at your leisure.” Zane was Zoisite in an instant, ready to disappear. “Unless you would prefer to accompany me?”

 

Yaten transformed, and Healer tilted her head. “You’re a teleporter, right?”

 

“Yes. Would you prefer that I bring you with me, or do you intend to go on foot?”

 

Healer had trust issues, but Zoisite always stayed so nonthreatening she thought she could ignore it long enough to spare herself a trip back across town. She nodded and put a hand on his arm as he pulled the magic around them until they were in the apartment. Seeing that Seiya and Usagi were both in civilian form, Zoisite did the same. Healer stubbornly remained a Senshi until her princess looked her way, at which point she sighed and powered down. 

 

“Thank you for coming, General Zoisite.”

 

Zane bowed. “It is always nice to find allies in such a troubled time, Princess Kakyuu. I am told you saved Sailor Moon, so we owe you a debt of gratitude.”

 

“She deserved any aid I could give, so think nothing of it. Where are your companions?”

 

“Sailors Uranus and Neptune have been notified and are hopefully en route,” he replied, looking to Kakyuu and Usagi both. When the foreign princess nodded, he turned his attention entirely to his exhausted charge. “You are unhurt? What precisely did you do?”

 

“I’m fine, just tired. I put a barrier over the city to keep Galaxia out for a while. It won’t last for very long, but it was only meant to tell her we weren’t going to take her attacks lying down anyway. I’ll go after her as soon as I’ve recovered my strength.”

 

He studied her carefully. “That was a foolish risk to take, Usagi-sama. The expenditure of so much power could have easily killed you.”

 

“I know. It was worth it, though, and even if I’d failed I would have been able to interfere with her plans that way too. A Star Seed that dies naturally would go back to the Cauldron, and she’d have to wait for it to be reborn again.”

 

Kakyuu glanced at the younger girl. “You know of the Galaxy Cauldron?”

 

“Yeah. I remember most of the things I learned in my last life, and… that’s where she is. Galaxia. She’s got a castle overlooking the Cauldron.”

 

Seiya, Yaten and Kakyuu were shocked, but Zane just nodded and summoned Mercury’s computer from his subspace pocket. “How and when did you learn of this, Usagi-sama?”

 

“I had a dream the night –” she bit her lip. “Well, that night. When we lost them, Jade’s spell broke. Oh, sweet goddess. Zane-kun, do you know about Nephrite and Kunzite?!”

 

His gaze was shuttered and carefully passive. “Yes, and Lady Venus as well. It has been another terrible day. Is that what led to your casting the spell over the city?”

 

She nodded. “I was just… Losing them so quickly, and so soon after the others, it was too much. I had to do something so I didn’t feel like I was letting Galaxia get away with it.”

 

“I see. Now, tell me about this dream of yours.”

 

“I saw the castle first,” she said obediently. “It was huge and made of some sort of golden crystal. The Cauldron was right by it, and on the far side there was a woman in a cloak. I thought she was Galaxia and tried to wake up so she wouldn’t notice me, but it wasn’t. The woman was talking to a shadow in the Cauldron. I couldn’t hear what it said, but it laughed until she cut it off and said she couldn’t let it escape, something like that. She was all in white under the cloak and made me feel peaceful, like everything would work out.”

 

“The Light of Hope,” Kakyuu murmured. “It must be.”

 

“What?”

 

Seiya sighed. “We mentioned it before. The Light of Hope was a legend during the Sailor Wars, claiming there was something out there Galaxia was deathly afraid of. No one knows who or what it is, but Galaxia said when she came for us that day that if we hadn’t thought to go looking for it she wouldn’t have come for us yet.”

 

“I remember that part. Why didn’t you mention this to me before?”

 

“Like Seiya said,” Yaten contributed, scoffing. “Everyone thinks it’s just a myth. Most people don’t believe it. Sorry, princess,” he added hurriedly.

 

Kakyuu just waved a hand. “Do not worry, Healer. I know you are not convinced, but I think this woman in white could be it if she was able to contact something within the Cauldron without drawing Galaxia’s attention despite being deep in her territory.”

 

“Knowing now where she is,” Zane said, “you intend to take the battle to her to prevent further loss of lives. Are you sure that is wise? We still do not know the extent of her power or if she commands any more dangerous subordinates. In truth, we know almost nothing about her.”

 

Usagi shrugged. “I have to try. There’s only a handful of us left, so we can’t let her keep picking us off one at a time.”

 

He nodded slowly. “It is not that I do not see the logic of your statement, but I worry for you. I will not be able to protect you much longer.”

 

Her focus tightened. “You’re not sick, are you?”

 

“You already knew I would not be able to survive the loss of Mercury,” he said. “I do not think I have much more time before I succumb.”

 

“There’s a way to stop it,” Yaten said. The others stopped and stared. “What? Princess Kakyuu and I both lost our lovers, but we’re still here.”

 

“He and I were not bonded,” Kakyuu said sadly. “We did not have time before Galaxia.”

 

“Well, I did. You can survive the loss, if you want to.”

 

“I know,” Zane replied, surprising Usagi. “I will not make that choice. The cost is too high. Perhaps if Prince Endymion was still alive, I might be willing to risk such a sacrifice, but he is gone as well. I will not linger without the people I love.”

 

“Cost?” Usagi repeated. 

 

He sighed, absently twining his hair around one hand. “I found mention of surviving the loss of a soulmate in one of Mercury’s older files. You have to let go of them entirely, effectively severing the bond.”

 

She understood why he wouldn’t follow that path. The instant she even heard the words, her entire being recoiled. She wouldn’t let go of Mamoru, not even when he was dead. 

 

“It’s hard,” Yaten said flatly. “Bordering on impossible. Doing something like that is basically the antithesis of everything we believe in, but I still had a mission so I made the call. She would’ve understood.”

 

Usagi shook her head once, then again more firmly. “I can’t. I won’t. I can draw out the process enough without doing that.”

 

“Even trying to hold on may make things more difficult,” Zane cautioned. 

 

“I don’t care. I won’t give him up after everything, and I can’t abandon this fight. We both know my death would give Galaxia everything she wants in a pretty little bow.”

 

“Except your crystal,” Kakyuu reminded. “The Cauldron would claim it.”

 

“That's why she’ll wait till I’ve recovered to do anything else. We finally have a chance to plan instead of running in blind.”

 

Zane and Yaten realized simultaneously that despite the force of her dedication, she was ready to faint again. The use of two powerful artifacts could be difficult even in the best of times, and the amount of power she’d channeled through them would have easily killed a lesser soul. She needed sleep, as much as she could get, if she hoped to rejoin the battle. 

 

“It is time for you to rest,” Zane said gently, laying one hand on her forehead. “Sleep, Usagi-sama. We can talk more in the morning.” Magic came into the touch as he transitioned back into his general form, and while the spell wasn’t particularly powerful it had the desired effect. She fell into a dreamless sleep, to heal and prepare.

 

88888888

 

Usagi decided, as she woke up, that she spent entirely too much time recuperating from just about everything in Mamoru’s bedroom. Usually it didn’t bother her, but he was generally the one nursing her back to health after whatever fiasco robbed her of it. It wasn’t that she didn’t enjoy Zane’s company, or the occasional visits from the Starlights and their princess, but it didn’t seem right. She leaned back against the pillows.

 

The Zoisite of the past had been reserved, and it wasn’t exactly unexpected considering he’d been raised primarily by Kunzite, who was quite taciturn himself. Despite that, he had been young and lively, quick to laugh while retaining that touch of formality. According to Ami, Zane had been the same before his reawakening. In one of the girls’ private moments, she’d talked about his beautiful smile and gentle humor. They were all surprised to hear it, having never seen it themselves. To everyone but her, that Zane didn’t exist. The one they knew was distant and quiet, barely communicating with the other Shitennou, let alone them. 

 

Usagi decided enough was enough. The Dark Kingdom had damaged them all, but they had chosen to let the pain go and move on. He still carried it, a terrible weight on thin shoulders lacking much needed support. She decided to appeal to Kakyuu. The new princess was divorced from the situation, so Zane would be more likely to believe her if she said he wasn’t at fault. 

 

Hearing a giggle, Zane looked over his book, one brow raised. “Is something funny?”

 

She waved a hand. “Just thinking. Hey, when’s Kakyuu going to get here?”

 

“I do not know,” he replied, turning the page. “The Starlights could be keeping her out of the public eye. They must still be concerned about the wounds she sustained during the war.”

 

She’d almost forgotten about that, and her mouth thinned. They’d all been taught that the power of their crystals was inviolable, particularly those of the alliance masters. That a stranger could sweep through a protected world, stealing the strength of their guardians, still seemed like an impossible dream. Kakyuu hadn’t even had a chance before Kinmoku was destroyed.

 

Zane closed the book, startling her out of her dark thoughts. “Something is troubling you. Should I try to find Uranus and Neptune again so you will have someone to talk to?”

 

She wanted to ask why he couldn’t do it himself, but she knew he wouldn’t answer. The general would do his duty, as he had always sworn, but he wasn’t ready to go beyond that. Still, it was strange that the Outers would let her perform that kind of magic and not show up to yell at her for being reckless. Reaching through the bonds that had begun to form between them, she came up empty. They were alive, that much was obvious, but nothing else. 

 

There was a knock at the front door, and Zane went to answer it. Usagi’s ears perked up as she recognized Kakyuu’s voice, but she couldn’t hear Seiya’s. She frowned. Yes, he was Kakyuu’s, but he was a friend, and she was desperately short on those. She nearly called Motoki before realizing that if Galaxia found out they were close he would almost certainly be killed. 

 

Before that thought could work its way under her skin, Kakyuu appeared. Taiki flanked her, as cool and silent as always. The other princess looked human at first, but then her glamour melted away and she was the same woman she’d woken up to the day before. 

 

“Kaki-chan!”

 

Kakyuu, who had been heading to her side, paused. “Kaki… chan?” Taiki slid closer and explained that both the shortened name and the use of ‘chan’ indicated a very informal, friendly relationship with the speaker in Japanese. Usagi was pretty sure he also said it was considered disrespectful, but she elected to ignore it. Kakyuu just nodded before taking her seat. Zane stayed in the front room while Taiki leaned against the wall behind his princess. 

 

“Hey, Kaki-chan, can I ask you for a favor?”

 

“Of course,” the older girl replied automatically. Usagi gestured her closer and explained her situation with Zane in as low a voice as she could. Kakyuu nodded as she did. “Maker?”

 

“Yes, princess?”

 

“Would you wait with Sailor Moon while I take care of something?”   
  


The brunette frowned. “Where are you going?”

 

“I need to speak with General Zoisite. It is extremely private, so I would like you to stay here while I do.” It was phrased like a request, but Taiki and Usagi both knew it wasn’t.

 

He bowed his head. “Of course.”

 

She rose and returned to the living room, where Zane had again occupied himself with one of the few books Mamoru had left behind. He immediately got to his feet when she entered, dipping into a shallow bow. 

 

“I would like to have a word with you,” Kakyuu said as she took a seat on the armchair. 

 

Zane remained standing. “Is there something wrong with Usagi-sama?”

 

“No. Thanks to your care, she is recovering nicely. She will be ready to fight again soon.”

 

“Then what can I help you with?”

 

The princess of Kinmoku met his gaze easily. “This is about helping you, not me.”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“Your princess is concerned for your well-being. She says you suffered a severe trauma some years ago that continues to haunt you.”

 

He frowned before responding. “Indeed, but I fail to see what that has to do with you.”

 

“She asked me to talk to you about it. She believes, and I concur, that you will benefit from addressing the issue with an outsider who can make an impartial judgment. She and the others could not give you that, having been too closely involved.”

 

“I appreciate the offer,” he said with a sigh, “but I have no wish to even think about the incident in question, let alone discuss it. I should go.”

 

“I chose to address this as a request,” she said to his retreating back. “It was not. She is ordering that you face the problem instead of continuing to allow it to poison your life. You were happy once. She wants you to have that again, even if you are unwilling to seek it out yourself.”

 

Zane stopped with his hand on the doorknob. Like before, the order in Kakyuu’s tone was unmistakable. His only remaining leader had mandated that he speak with an outsider about the most painful time in his life, and he could not ignore his obligations and disobey. The weight on his shoulders pressed down as he eased onto the sofa to face the foreign princess. It took far more effort than usual to maintain his composure. 

 

“What do you want to know?”

 

88888888

 

Kakyuu was terrifyingly thorough and refused to let him flinch away from any subject, no matter how difficult, including the perversion of his ties to Kunzite. The unholy relationship between himself and his leader was laid bare, and the continuing unease it caused. If there was a detail he knew about their battle with the Dark Kingdom, even the most insignificant bit of fact, she extracted it from him. His despair was almost tangible by the time they finished. 

 

She let the silence linger for a beat before she deigned to speak. “For all these years, you have blamed yourself for the downfall of the Silver Alliance and the deaths of your loved ones. This is because you were the first to fall to Beryl’s brainwashing. You were not strong enough to resist her torture, because you were young and small and your powers were not as suited to resisting as your brothers’ were.”

 

“Yes.”

 

“I will be totally honest with you. Do you find that acceptable?” He shrugged. It was hard to know what to say. She took it as permission to go on. “You are the reason the kingdoms fell.”

 

Whatever Zane had expected from the forced revelation, that had not been it. “What?”

 

“Were it not for you, the Shitennou would not have become Queen Metallia’s servants, and the attack on the Moon Kingdom would have proven unsuccessful. Ultimately, you are the one who could not resist.”

 

His head fell into his hands. “I already know all that.”

 

“But it was not your fault.”

 

Zane’s eyes snapped up so fast he thought his neck might break. “What?!”

 

“That statement was perfectly clear. It is simple. While you were the reason these events occurred, there was nothing you could have done to prevent them and you cannot reasonably be held responsible for actions taken by others. You already accept that you were the reason, but you thought that meant you were to blame. You are not. The only ones who deserve that burden are the ones who made the dark choices and walked a dangerous path.”

 

He was practically gaping at the young woman who was so calmly dismantling his view of the entire incident and of himself. “You cannot be calling me blameless.”

 

“That is exactly what I am doing. You were eighteen, barely more than a boy, and what was done to you was beyond anything I would expect someone to withstand. You have suffered untold horrors, and you continue to let it haunt you out of a misplaced sense of guilt. It is time for you to let go and move on. Even the relationship you fear damaged beyond repair by the dark queen can be mended if you would just try to open up to your commander again. You have been close for too long; she cannot separate you if you do not allow it.”

 

“I – I –”

 

“It’s time, Zane-kun,” Usagi said. She was leaning against the doorframe, and Taiki had one hand out to support her, but she seemed to be handling herself well enough. “You can’t live like this anymore. You deserve to be happy again.”

 

“But it was my fault,” he said automatically.

 

The blonde just shook her head. “No, it wasn’t. You’re all I have, you know. We weren’t close before, but I want to be your friend. You don’t have to wait for the end alone.”

 

After staring at her for an inordinate amount of time, Zane got to his feet. Taiki took an automatic step back, but all he did was take his princess’s arms and pull her into a tight hug, her head tucked into the crook of his neck as the first tears slid down his cheeks. 

 

88888888

 

“Find Luna and Artemis. And Arashi, Phobos, and Deimos, if you can.”

 

Zane looked up in surprise. The last thing he’d expected so soon after her near-disastrous attempt to shield the city was Usagi in the secret base beneath Crown. She had avoided it since Jadeite first blocked her memories. 

 

“Is something wrong?”

 

“They’ve been missing for too long,” the blonde said flatly. “Phobos and Deimos I can understand; they wouldn’t linger without Rei-chan. Arashi wasn’t around much to begin with. Artemis adored Minako-chan, so even he makes a little sense, but Luna would never leave me in the middle of a crisis.”

 

“How long has it been since you last saw them?” he asked, already calling up a search program on the main console. 

 

“Arashi hasn’t put in an appearance since the Dead Moon Circus, at least not that I know about. Phobos and Deimos were at the shrine before we lost Rei. They weren’t there when I went back. Artemis and Luna haven’t been to see me since the beginning, but I couldn’t remember.”

 

He hesitated before deciding to say what she probably already suspected. “While none of them tended to demonstrate their power, save Arashi, we knew they had at least a little magical ability. They may have been some of Galaxia’s earlier victims.”

 

“I know. If you can’t find them, it’s at least an answer. I don’t want to sit and wonder.”

 

The computer emitted a low whirring, but other than that the command center was silent. It remained that way until the search was complete and gave a single forlorn beep. Nothing.

 

“I’m going to find her, you know. Will you come with me?”

 

“Yes, of course.”

 

Usagi shook her head. “I’m not asking as the princess. I’m talking to you as my friend. I don’t want to go alone, Zane-kun, and we still haven’t found Uranus and Neptune.”

 

“I think Sailor Neptune is using her precognitive ability to avoid being tracked.” If she knew what area was being searched, it wasn’t inconceivable that she would simply have them go elsewhere until it was over. “But what about the Starlights? Will they not accompany us?”

 

“I don’t know. Healer and Maker would if their princess ordered, but we can’t ask.”

 

“And Fighter?”

 

“She’s a friend too,” the blonde replied with a shrug. “I think she’d come if I asked, but I can’t do that for the same reason I can’t ask Kaki-chan.”

 

Zane regarded her steadily before sighing. “In truth, I do not know how much help I can be. I am not the strongest under the best of circumstances, and being without Ami for so long has weakened me. I have no doubt one more assault will finish me off, and you would be alone.”

 

“If I thought leaving would save you, I’d have sent you away a long time ago.”

 

“I know.”

 

With no remaining bond-mates, his time was almost gone. Mercury’s loss was the hardest to bear, with how deep their connection went, but the other Shitennou had been able to support him at first. His link to her was indirect and no help. He was alone, and all she had was a fragile tie to the Outer couple. It wouldn’t be long until that little bit of support dissipated as well. 

 

Usagi let out a weary breath. She wanted a hug, or reassurances that everything would work out.  _ Something _ . There was just no one to supply it. She couldn’t even risk going up to the arcade for some comfort food and a good dramatic cry, because if Galaxia hadn’t realized how important Motoki was to her, she wouldn’t risk drawing attention to him. There was also the chance of him carrying lingering magic from his brief time as Tuxedo Kamen.

 

As such, she was pleasantly surprised when Zane scooted over so she could take a seat on the couch he’d moved to while she was lost in her thoughts. That surprise became astonishment when he tucked his arm around her, letting her nestle close. He had Mercury’s computer in his other hand and was murmuring commands to it, but she was asleep too quickly to really notice. 

 

88888888

 

“We’re going to hold a farewell concert tomorrow.”

 

Usagi gaped. Words tried to form, but nothing came out.

 

“No retort, Odango? I’m hurt.”

 

Her mouth closed with a snap and she went through a brief internal war before deciding to answer. “What do you mean by ‘farewell’?”

 

Seiya frowned, his normally fine features becoming more severe than she’d ever seen in the carefree pop idol’s face before. On Fighter, certainly, but Seiya had always tried to be a bit more normal when in disguise. “We both know there’s only two ways this will end.”

 

“We die or we win,” she said in a near whisper. “And hope we get the others back.”

 

“Basically. If we don’t survive, we won’t be playing again, obviously. If we actually make it through this, we’ll go home. Rebuild.”

 

She decided not to ask how they’d manage that, but a world couldn’t thrive with only four people. “Okay, so I get why it’s the last one, but should it really happen at all? Your other concert turned into a battlefield.”

 

“I don’t know. Closure? A bit of beauty before this gets worse? No matter what we do from here, civilians will probably be hurt. The four of us thought we could at least give them something they love one last time.”

 

“That’s sweet,” she said, and she meant it. “I’m just worried it could make things worse.”

 

“So am I,” Seiya admitted tiredly. 

 

“This can’t go on forever.”

 

“I know. And we’re with you, by the way. I know you won’t ask, but Princess Kakyuu already told us we’ll go to the Cauldron when you do. The Sailor Wars are our problem too.”

 

“She still hasn’t explained what she meant about Chibi Chibi being a Senshi.”

 

“Same. I think she knows more about it, but she’s keeping it to herself for some reason.”

 

Usagi looked out over the city. The roof of Mamoru’s building wasn’t accessible from the inside, which made it totally private. They had initially taken up their position on the pretense of checking the shield, but in reality it had more to do with the need to be away from everything. Well, that was why she’d done it. She was fairly sure Seiya was there because Kakyuu thought she might do something rash if she was left alone. 

 

“V-chan didn’t think we could win.”

 

“Do you?”

 

“I don’t know. Jadeite’s instincts were amazing, but he’s not a Seer. Mars was too sick to tell us anything, and the deaths of all the Senshi blocked most of Nephrite’s Sight well before we lost him. Neptune is my best bet for finding out more, but she isn’t answering my summons.”

 

“Do you think they’ll join Galaxia?”

 

“No. We’ve been on opposite sides before, sort of, but we always wanted the same thing. They’d never betray me. They would die before they joined Galaxia.”

 

“You almost sound like you mean it,” Seiya said wryly.   
  


“I do. Despite everything we’ve been through, I believe in them. I know people think I’m too trusting, even though… They’ve been willing to do terrible things before, but it was always with the best intentions. They won’t just hand our world over to the enemy.”

 

He nodded instead of arguing. His experience with the Outer Senshi had been limited to a few uncomfortable confrontations in which they made it clear how they felt about the Starlights essentially invading their territory. He didn’t know them well enough to judge their loyalty. 

 

“I should go,” Usagi said abruptly. “MOON ETERNAL, MAKE-UP!” Her white wings billowed as soon as the transformation was complete, and she gave a little wave before taking flight. He watched until she landed near the arcade, likely to rejoin Zoisite in their base. 

 

Seiya fingered his Change Star, ready to don his natural form and return to Kakyuu, but before he could the wind shifted ominously behind him. Becoming Fighter instinctually, she spun into a defensive pose. Uranus and Neptune stood on the other side of the roof, stern, cold, and forbidding. Their arms were crossed over their chests and they seemed to be looking down on her, so Fighter straightened. Energy had collected in her palm when she’d been startled, but while she forced herself to practice restraint she also held onto it. 

 

“You’re fighting with her,” Uranus said flatly. 

 

“Of course we are,” Fighter returned. “This war affects everyone in the galaxy. She’s the best shot at saving us all. Did you think we wouldn’t care?”

 

“Would you die for her?” Neptune asked. 

 

The Starlight lowered her hand slowly, stunned. “What are you even asking?”

 

“Would you. Die. For her.” Uranus was only repeating what her partner had said, but the words, already chilling, took on a nearly lethal iciness as they came from her. Fighter stared at them in shock. Eventually, tired of the lengthy silence, the blonde scoffed. “Useless.” She gave Fighter a dark, threatening look. Anyone who had been fighting as long as they had could be intimidating, but this seemed like something else entirely. “She’d better not hear about this. Otherwise you won’t even have a chance to help her or your princess.”

 

They leapt from the roof in casual abandon, and an updraft propelled them even further than their Senshi strength could. Fighter just watched, heart in her throat. She’d managed to find recordings of the Guardian Senshi’s interviews and had heard about how dangerous the pair could be, but being confronted by it was far more alarming than she’d anticipated. She wanted to find Usagi and tell her what had happened, but she didn’t doubt the veracity of Uranus’ threat. 

 

Kakyuu’s gentle voice drifted to her, jerking her out of her stunned reverie. “Fighter? Is anything wrong? I sensed your distress.”

 

Dry-mouthed, Fighter told her princess of the unsettling conversation. “I think they’re going to betray her,” she said finally. “I can’t think of anything else that would make them try to keep me from telling her, or so unreceptive to our help.”

 

The princess’s red eyes remained cool and composed. “Maybe so, but if that is their game they have now alerted us to it. We can watch and take care to guard Sailor Moon.”

 

“I should tell her, though. She deserves to know!”

 

She shook her head. “Your suspicions would only distress her when she just affirmed her belief in them so strongly. My recommendation would be to confer with General Zoisite at the nearest opportunity and be ready to protect her if need be.”

 

“They’re together right now.”

 

“Then we wait. If Galaxia continues to hold off, Sailor Moon’s shield will stay in place until after your concert. When that is done, we can decide what to do next.”

 

They’d been working on a new song since Kakyuu’s appearance, determined to produce their best piece ever. The melody was done; Taiki just had to put the finishing touches on the lyrics. It was so catchy even Yaten had been humming it on and off for a few days.

 

“I’m scared,” Fighter admitted in the broken tone of one who’d lost far too much.

 

“We all are.”

 

She looked the direction Sailor Moon had gone. “She seems so fragile. I don’t know how she’s managed to last this long.”

 

“Beneath the gentle surface is a core of steel. She will find the strength to do what she must.” Kakyuu studied her guardian. “You need to be her shield, Fighter. I have three protectors. Hers have dwindled to only the one, and he is not long for the world. I am asking you to stand in their place, to guard her against any danger until she can put an end to this war.”

 

“My job is to protect you,” she said, aghast.

 

“Healer and Maker will continue to do so. No matter what I say they will not stray from my side. Only one who cares for her would be willing to take up this cause. This is not an order,” she said, forestalling an argument. “It is a request, and not given as a princess but as a concerned friend. If you refuse I will understand, but I hope you will do as I ask. She must live.”

 

“You can’t expect me to do that,” Fighter argued. Pleaded. 

 

“But I do. You care about the girl. You need not tell me your decision; your actions will speak for themselves when the time comes.”

 

Lacking a response, the dark-haired Senshi bowed her head and followed Kakyuu home. The horrible pressure of a clock counting down the seconds to the end stalked her as she did.

 

88888888

 

Usagi lingered in the corner of the band’s prep area along with Chibi Chibi and Kakyuu, who was disguised for the occasion. Taiki was muttering the new song lyrics to himself, brow furrowed like he was reconsidering some word or other but knowing there wasn’t enough time to make changes. Yaten had collapsed on the couch as soon as the makeup artists were done and waved a hand in front of his face dramatically, complaining about how hot the stage lights would be. Seiya was unusually withdrawn. Instead of joining the others, he’d moved to a chair in the corner and was staring blankly at the wall, a foreboding look on his handsome face. 

 

“Is something wrong with them?” Usagi whispered to Kakyuu.

 

“I do not think so. Fighter told me they are usually quiet before a performance.”

 

The blonde frowned. Quiet was one thing; acting like the world was about to end in a few moments was another entirely. “Seiya, are you okay?”

 

That finally pulled him out of his thoughts. He looked up at her and smiled. “I’m fine, Odango. Just nervous about the show. The new song’s a bit different from our other stuff.”

 

A staff member knocked, warning them they had five minutes. Seiya nodded and waved her away before turning to his bandmates. Yaten slid off the couch and Taiki put away the sheet music he’d been going over. The three bowed to their princess before hurrying out of the room.

 

“I have a bad feeling about this, Kaki-chan. Something’s going to happen.”

 

The princess of Kinmoku nodded. “All we can do now is weather the storm.” Their eyes met. “She is coming for us.”

 

“The shield –”

 

“You are ready to fight her, and she grows tired of your rebellion. It will be tonight. We must pray that we are safely away from here by the time she arrives.”

 

“But Seiya and the others are in danger too. I can’t leave them.”

 

Kakyuu sighed. “No, we cannot. Let us watch, Sailor Moon, and hope it is not too late.”

 

88888888

 

Usagi thought everyone in Japan must have heard the Three Lights sing at some point, but the performance they were putting on for this last concert surpassed it all. They were glowing under the lights, as brightly as if they were Senshi channeling the shine of their stars. She wanted it to stay beautiful, but she knew in her heart that it wasn’t meant to be. There was no time left.

 

An explosion rocked the concert hall as they started the last song, the one that had made them famous. It knocked them right off their feet, and most of Tokyo along with them. She and Kakyuu managed to stay upright, grabbing pillars to keep their feet, but they were a minority. Chibi Chibi held onto Usagi’s leg for support. 

 

“Transform,” Kakyuu said hurriedly. “That was no Animamate. She is here. KINMOKU STAR POWER, MAKE-UP!”

 

“Galaxia,” Usagi whispered. “MOON ETERNAL, MAKE-UP!”

 

They were in the very back, away from any prying eyes, so at least she didn’t have to worry about being identified. She and Kakyuu raced through their transformations and quickly summoned as much power as they safely could, ready for whatever came next. 

 

“FIGHTER STAR POWER, MAKE-UP!”

 

“MAKER STAR POWER, MAKE-UP!”

 

“HEALER STAR POWER, MAKE-UP!”

 

“No!” Sailor Kakyuu choked, hurrying to the rail. “Do not reveal yourselves like this!”

 

Sailor Moon grabbed her arm. “You were going to leave soon anyway. It doesn’t matter. We need to get to them before Galaxia does.”

 

Chibi Chibi, in a Senshi form Sailor Moon had never seen before, tugged on one of her dangling back ribbons. “Hurry!” she urged in her little voice.

 

There were so many questions she could’ve asked, but there was no time. She picked up the littler Senshi and leapt over the guard rail as Kakyuu did the same, pumping her wings and landing onstage next to the Starlights. The ground continued to tremble around them as dark power cleaved through the protective barrier overhead. 

 

“MOON CRYSTAL POWER!” the Moon Senshi cried, flinging her arms out. Waves of magic swept through her, reaching for the failing shield, but it was abruptly repulsed. She flew back and nearly took the Starlights down with her. 

 

Fighter ran over. “Sailor Moon, are you all right?!”

 

“I’m fine,” she said with a grimace. 

 

The black-haired warrior hovered protectively as her friend got to her feet as quickly as she could, unsteady with the barrier’s backlash and the tremors. They quickly rejoined the others, prepared to throw everything they had at whatever came through.

 

The dome’s undoing nearly took her apart, but Sailor Moon managed to stand despite it. The sky was washed black for kilometers, and negative energy poured through. Screams of pain and sirens filled their ears. The entire city was under siege. “Your fight is with me, Galaxia!” she screamed into the storm. “At least give me a chance!”

 

A familiar, eerie laugh penetrated the cacophony. “If you say so, Sailor Moon.”

 

It was the first time Galaxia had appeared on Earth in the flesh. Her uniform glittered in the darkness, more like golden armor than anything. The Starlights went rigid, remembering their last moments on Kinmoku. Sailor Kakyuu tried to edge in front of them, but her movement was enough to pull them out of their memories. Healer and Maker quickly took defensive positions between her and Galaxia. Fighter did the same for Sailor Moon. 

 

“What are you doing?!” she demanded. 

 

“I’m protecting you,” Fighter answered. “No matter what happens, you have to survive.”

 

“No! I don’t want that! Don’t you dare die for me!”

 

Her face softened. “I’ll try not to.”

 

“I thought you said this was between you and I, Sailor Moon,” Galaxia called. “Here I am, but I can barely see you through your devoted, treacherous protector.”

 

“Fighter, get out of my way!”

 

“Wait.” The word was quietly spoken, but it might as well have been a gunshot. Silence suddenly fell between the sides as two more Senshi appeared. 

 

Galaxia, who had been ready to strike down the Starlights where they stood, smirked and straightened. “So, Uranus and Neptune come to play. Are you going to stand between me and your precious princess, to die for her as the others did?”

 

“Of course not. We came to join you,” Uranus replied in the same knife-sharp tone she’d used with Fighter the day before.

 

“No…” Sailor Moon sank to her knees. “You’re lying. You can’t mean it.”

 

“Why should we sacrifice our lives for you?” Neptune asked with casual negligence. “It doesn’t help, and I don’t want to die. Neither of us does.”

 

The tiny blonde covered her ears. “You’re wrong. Lying. Joking. I don’t know.”

 

“Sailor Moon…” Fighter said uncertainly.

 

Uranus faced Galaxia with her arms crossed. “You said you work with anyone who asks. We’re asking. Real Senshi are more powerful than your puppets anyway.”

 

“True,” she drawled, “but I am not in a hurry to believe you. The last time I tried to deal with one of yours I had to bloody my hands to prove I was not to be trifled with.”

 

“It worked,” the blonde said grimly. “I won’t fight you knowing I’ll lose. And Jadeite was never one of mine. He was a weakling who fell into darkness before and will again.”

 

“Then prove you will be loyal to me.”

 

“What do we have to do?” Neptune asked. 

 

With a golden flash, the Sailor Crystals were torn from Uranus and Neptune’s bodies. Galaxia waved her hand, and the golden bracers all her servants wore appeared. “Would you kill your princess?” Galaxia asked. “Just remember, if you do not please me, all I have to do is remove the bracelets and you will die.”

 

Sailor Moon kept shaking her head and whispering ‘no’ under her breath, too shocked to do anything else. Fighter crouched and pulled her into a protective embrace, giving the Outers a look that positively dared them to try to hurt her. 

 

They both turned her way. “We’ve followed Sailor Moon this long out of obligation, and old bonds laid on us before we were able to make our own choices. There’s no reason to keep doing it when we’re never going to get what we deserve from her,” Uranus said. 

 

“No,” the golden Senshi said abruptly, stopping them. She pointed at Sailor Moon, then turned. “Not her… The child.”

 

Chibi Chibi, several paces away, froze. Sailor Moon struggled to extract herself from Fighter, to do something to protect her, but she was too far away. Neptune just flicked her wrists in the little girl’s direction, and the beams of light shot from her bracelets. 

 

“NO!” Sailor Moon screamed. 

 

When the light cleared, she found herself even more horrified. Zoisite was in front of Chibi Chibi, folded protectively around her, already fading. Barrier spells between him and the attacking warriors were breaking down, and she realized he’d used them to slow the energy enough to keep it from passing through him into the little girl. 

 

Galaxia examined the blue-violet crystal in her hand. “Well, this is probably more potent than a child’s anyway.” She looked up at Sailor Moon. “I wanted to see your face when you realized you could not save her, but watching you lose your last friend after being betrayed is better.” She gestured, and Uranus and Neptune disappeared. Sailor Moon cried out, but she only laughed.  “Come find me, Sailor Moon. I want to see you work for your death.” She vanished.

 

“No…” She forced herself to her feet and staggered to Zoisite. He was half translucent, but as he slumped to the ground he didn’t seem to be in pain like the others were. “Zoisite…”

 

“You could not have withstood witnessing the death of a child in your care,” he said gently. “It was my choice, my last chance to help. Do not grieve, Sailor Moon. I am at peace.”

 

“It shouldn’t be this way!” She leaned in and kissed him on the forehead. “Don’t go…”

 

“I am proud to call you my princess, my queen-to-be, and I believe you will call us back. Until then, please remember how much we love you.” He closed his eyes and shattered. 

 

Sailor Moon wished she was still numb. She’d regretted not crying over Venus, but after the loss of Zoisite and a horrible betrayal she felt as if she could sob for weeks. She fought to hold it in, but when Fighter laid a comforting hand on her shoulder she gave in and wept. The taller girl held her close as she did. 

 

“Stand up, Sailor Moon,” Kakyuu ordered. “We cannot let Sailor Galaxia’s hold on this planet grow any stronger. She has challenged you to meet her, and you will do so.”

 

“I can’t win,” she whispered from the protective shelter of Fighter’s arms. “She’s taken everyone from me. I’m alone.”

 

“If you fall to despair, you will be giving her exactly what she wants.”

 

“You aren’t alone,” Fighter said quietly. “I’m going to protect you. The six of us can face Galaxia together. You can beat her.”

 

The blonde shook her head and tried to retreat further into her embrace, but she was stopped by tiny hands on her face. “Chibi Chibi?”

 

“Be brave,” the little girl urged. “You can do it. You can stop her!”

 

Just as it had the first time she saw Chibi Chibi in a Senshi uniform, endless questions vied for release, but Sailor Moon shook them off. She couldn’t spare the time when everyone in the world was in danger. As much as she wanted to cry until it was over, she had to find Galaxia. 

 

“I know she’s at the Galaxy Cauldron,” she said slowly. “But I don’t know the way.”

 

“I do,” Kakyuu assured her. “My Senshi and I will guide you to Sagittarius Zero Star.”

 

“Then let’s go,” Sailor Moon said as her wings extended. “It’s time to end this.”

 

88888888

 

It felt like the worst sort of failure to leave Tokyo while black lightning ravaged the city, but the only way to put an end to it was to confront Galaxia. Their silent wings propelled them at impossible speeds, until the planets and stars were little more than pale blurs around them. 

 

“Is she the only one left?” Sailor Moon asked as they flew steadily on. “Galaxia?”

 

After a long deliberation, Kakyuu shook her head. “I believe she still has servants she has chosen to hold back. Her most powerful supporters have yet to face us. More, she can create her puppet soldiers as many times as she wishes using the stolen Sailor Crystals.” 

 

“We’ll do whatever it takes to get you to Galaxia,” Fighter added. Chibi Chibi nodded.

 

“But we never found the Light of Hope.”

 

“It was only ever a small chance,” Kakyuu said. “We cannot dwell on it now. Do you see that dense cluster of stars ahead of us? Our destination lies in its center, past Sagittarius Alpha Star. The Galaxy Cauldron is just beyond.”

 

The directions became irrelevant quickly. Sailor Moon could feel the pull of the golden castle like a magnet, drawing her to their inevitable doom or triumph. Galaxia was anticipating their arrival. She didn’t know if she was strong enough to stop a war that was burning out stars. 

 

The silence returned, and it covered the group as they finally reached a landing point, not daring to go to the castle directly. They found themselves in the midst of a desert, buffeted by hot winds that would have made continued flight extremely difficult even if they’d been so inclined. Their smallest companion would have been blown away, and the thought was unbearable. 

 

“What now?” Sailor Moon asked dully. Her voice barely carried through the pressure of the air currents. “Is there anything we can do?”

 

“All that matters now is ensuring you reach the Cauldron alive,” Kakyuu answered as she smoothed her short skirt just to have something to do with her hands. “Sailor Galaxia has named you her target, so you are the only one of us she considers a real opponent.”

 

“What about the rest of you?” the blonde demanded. “Are you giving up?!”

 

“No, of course not,” Fighter replied. “We’re being realistic. In the best case scenario, all of us would make it to her, but we have to consider the possibility of there being other warriors waiting. If there are, the three of us will protect you and our princess. And Chibi Chibi,” she added, with a wry look at the little girl clinging to Maker’s leg. 

 

They could all sense Galaxia’s power looming ahead, and Healer studied the rest of the group for a moment before turning that way. “We should keep moving. At least we’ll be getting closer while she decides whether or not to attack.”

 

The too-familiar words reminded her of her walk to the Dark Kingdom. She tried to keep her composure, but she couldn’t help but shudder as the memories washed over her. They’d all come back, true, but she’d felt all of her friends torn from her while she had to keep going for their mission. This time her friends were already gone, and she might not be able to undo it. Sailor Moon looked at the Starlights, Kakyuu and Chibi Chibi, praying that she wouldn’t lose them too. The deepest recesses of her mind warned that she more than likely would. Galaxia enjoyed her pain too much to pass up such an opportunity. 

 

“There’s something ahead,” Maker called. She and Healer had been switching between leading and staying with their princess. Kakyuu and the silver-haired Senshi quickly joined her on the rise, staring out over the desert. “It looks like water, but it wouldn’t make sense. In a place this dry, it would evaporate before long.”

 

“We shouldn’t expect things to follow normal rules here,” Healer replied. 

 

“It doesn’t matter,” Fighter said briskly, taking point. “Whatever it is, it’s between us and Galaxia. We have to keep going.”

 

Their leader’s no-nonsense attitude seemed to bother Healer, who was the closest their group came to a Seer, but she couldn’t divine the water’s purpose from such a distance. Even if it was something they had to avoid, they would need to get closer to find out. 

 

Sailor Moon wished for Mercury as they continued their trek. Her mist would have been a comfort in the miserable heat, and since water was her element she would have been able to tell them what it was as soon as she saw it. She realized Neptune could do the same, but the knife of the Outers’ betrayal drove through her again. It couldn’t be true. No matter what had happened, Uranus and Neptune had always fought for their world. They had to be planning something. 

 

She wanted to just sit and think, to try to work out what had happened, but the rivers were much closer than they had looked from the top of the dune and they were there almost before they realized. They were truly massive, the far bank almost at the edges of a Senshi’s magically enhanced sight, and they didn’t mix even when the separate waters crossed in a huge X. As they approached, two young women appeared to face the newcomers. 

 

“The rivers are not easily forded,” one said. She wore a black dress with accessories that marked her as a Senshi. Her face was set in stern lines. “I am Sailor Lethe, Soldier of Oblivion.”

 

The second, who wore a pink dress that matched both girls’ hair, gave them a smile. “If you want to cross, you will need our help. I am Sailor Mnemosyne, Soldier of Memory.”

 

Propriety said they had to introduce themselves, and they did so in quick, biting words before picking up the conversational thread. “You’re wearing Galaxia’s bracelets,” Healer observed with a scowl. “Why should we trust you?”

 

The black-clad girl just shrugged, but the other met Healer’s gaze easily. “My sister and I only want the war to end. We will do whatever it takes to see that happen.”

 

“You cannot cross the water without our aid,” Lethe added.

 

Sailor Moon believed it. The winds were too wild to fly, and the water had to be magical. Given the Senshi standing guard, she could even guess what each river did.

 

“Why should we trust you?” Maker said, repeating her friend’s question. 

 

“You have no choice,” Mnemosyne replied without hesitation. “The rivers encircle the Cauldron, and this is the only crossing point.”

 

The Moon Senshi made a snap decision. She turned to her companions. “I’ll go. Just take Chibi Chibi when you leave. This is no place for a child.”

 

Healer and Maker seemed ready to agree, but Fighter and Kakyuu shook their heads. “We have not come this far to abandon you now,” the other princess said. 

 

“Kaki-chan…” She’d come to expect that from her girls, but she never thought she’d hear it from near strangers. It made her think of Uranus and Neptune again, and she winced. 

 

Fighter offered a tense grin. “Together till the end, Odango.”

 

Banishing the threatening tears, Sailor Moon faced the other guardians, standing as tall and strong as she could. “Help us cross the rivers, please.”

 

Perfectly in sync, the twins turned and raised their arms. An arch formed as they did, the water rising and falling, but leaving a path to the other side. One flashed to the opposite bank, still holding the rivers up. The nearer twin, Mnemosyne, gave them an incomprehensible look and tilted her head toward the opening. “Hurry,” she warned. “We cannot hold it back for long.”

 

The distance seemed even greater than it had before the water lifted. The group hurried forward. Sailor Moon doubted anyone was surprised when the rivers fell and swallowed them. 

 

88888888

 

She woke to nothing.

 

“Who are you?” a voice asked. It seemed familiar, and reminded her she could speak too.

 

“I don’t know. I don’t remember.”

 

“Do you have anyone you love?”

 

The words brought a searing pain. There was someone, many someones, there had to be, but it was as shrouded as her identity. “I don’t remember,” she repeated. “I think so.”

 

“Isn’t being alone easier? It doesn’t hurt now, does it? Forgetting helps.”

 

She almost faded into nothing again, but something about the words didn’t make sense. She thought she probably didn’t quite like being alone. “What have I forgotten?”

 

An image appeared. “Was it him? Didn’t you love him?”

 

The white hair and arresting eyes triggered a wave of strange familiarity, but the feelings were more sad than anything, even laced with tenderness and a gentle emotion that could have grown into something more. It wasn’t him; he wasn’t  _ the one _ , though he clearly meant something to her. Knowing that gave her no comfort when he collapsed, life’s blood pouring from a wound she instinctively knew had been meant for her. 

 

She cried out in pain. “Why?! What did you do to him?!”

 

“Who?” the voice asked with a mocking bite. “You’re alone. People are born alone, they die alone, and whatever lies in between doesn’t matter.”

 

The bloody corpse was gone, a beautiful woman taking its place. She was delicately built and stunning, with long pink hair over a daring dress. There was disgust now, and fear, and a love so strong it burned. She almost had a name for the young woman, hovering at the edge of her consciousness, but it slipped away every time she reached for it. Instead of a terrible death, the apparition only sneered and turned away, leaving her with that crippling fear and love. 

 

A group of girls in strange uniforms followed. Their long ponytails were three different colors. Two wore frowns; the third beamed a smile like a star. The pair was familiar, but the girl with the smile triggered fondness. This girl was a friend, maybe new, but a true companion. They faded into sparks, and the sight might have made her ill if she’d understood. It was something she knew, she believed absolutely, but how, and why was it so upsetting?

 

Another woman appeared, with red hair in loops and tranquil eyes. She caused the same sense of camaraderie as the happy one in the trio, but with a sense of being even newer. There was a bond between them, strengthening that. They shared a burden of some sort. She dissolved into the same light as the three before her, and it was just as hard to see a second time. 

 

Men, of a different cast than the first, were next. They were all in a blue uniform with pale capes, but most faces were not so proper. The blue eyed blond seemed to laugh without a sound, and the second, who looked remarkably like him, had a sort of incredible intelligence in his green eyes that made it impossible for him to seem cold. The taller brunette was relaxed and friendly, while the lordly white-haired man wore the slightest hint of an indulgent smile behind a practiced mask. She knew them all, loved them, and felt a tingle of loss she couldn’t explain. They were gone as quickly as they had arrived.

 

Soon a group came, a mix of ages. One was a girl, delicate, almost otherworldly, with fine bones and a sense of agelessness despite clear youth. Two were teenagers with an incredible link, gravitating to each other. The fourth was more alien than the first, a grown woman with ancient eyes. They were met with the same love she’d felt before, but it was tinged with a painful bitterness. Something had gone wrong with them. Her feeling was confirmed when the teens attacked the other two, leaving them to die in light. The pair grew ominously dark, and it was almost as breathtakingly terrible as the pink haired woman. It wasn’t supposed to be that way. 

 

The next four were so familiar she couldn’t understand how she’d forgotten them. She knew their faces, voices, movements, as if they were an extension of herself. Still, names eluded her, and the familiarity didn’t give way to the memories she craved so desperately. These girls were hers, in their tiaras and colored uniforms, or in what her mind considered ‘ordinary’ clothes even when she had no frame of reference. She loved them completely and eternally, and they her. They’d put their lives on the line for each other before, and she couldn’t remember them. Soon the only feeling she could summon was disgust with herself, for having forgotten. The sparks came again, thick and furious, as if her love was fuel to consume them even faster. Her mind reeled, scrambling for purchase through the soul-crushing ache of their loss. They were too precious to let go, but they’d been cruelly snatched away just the same. 

 

A child replaced them, one she knew as well as the four. After a minute’s confusion, she linked the youthful features with the harsh woman she had already seen and understood that this was why she had been so hurt and afraid of the woman. She was supposed to be this small thing with a sweet nature, not a sneering temptress. The love came, a different flavor but just as strong. She faded as others had, thankfully without the sparks, but a sense of utter finality that followed was even more crippling as she realized the girl would be gone for good.

 

Black flowers and dark blue eyes came next, with a stern, forbidding face that made the fear and love of the pink-haired woman seem like nothing. It was him, then. He was the person she loved, but something was wrong. He had never been so cold. She knew it as surely as she could know anything. He was supposed to be light and life, red roses and a golden locket. The apparition drew a sword, and for the first time she became aware of possessing a physical form. She moved away quickly, but there was a wall and nowhere left to go.

 

“No!” she protested. “I don’t want this! Please!”

 

The man hesitated, and for a moment she thought it would all be okay. Instead, he threw the weapon aside and lunged for her throat. 

 

“Mamo-chan! NO!”

 

White light poured from the broach she hadn’t known she was wearing, and in a flash she  _ knew _ . This was an image of the past, an enemy already defeated. It was a haunting memory that kept her awake at night even after so long. She spread her wings, ignoring the water-not-water all around her, and used them to launch herself from the river and its magic. 

 

Buffeting winds threatened to send her back to oblivion, but she summoned her power and wove a protective sphere. Sailor Moon reached the far banks and collapsed on burning sand.

 

“How did you do that?”

 

Forcing herself back to her feet, Sailor Moon retched as soon as she located the speaker. Fading sparks all but obscured the fading women behind her, but she could see Fighter struggling to reach her. Their crystals were in Lethe’s hand as the other girl approached. 

 

“You killed them,” the blonde said, horrified. “Your sister said you just wanted the war to end, but you waited until they were helpless and killed them. That’s not what someone does if they want peace. Doing this can only lead to more fighting.”

 

“You didn’t answer my question,” the black-clad girl said flatly, not caring about her protests. “How did you remember? You were lost. You shouldn’t have been able to escape.”

 

Sailor Moon shook her head. “I don’t know.”

 

Lethe clearly didn’t believe her. She growled. “Well, never mind then. It doesn’t matter. You’ll be dead soon, and the war you caused will be over.”

 

The answer was so unexpected she didn’t know what she could say. Galaxia had been the one bringing war to a peaceful place, not her. She hated the fighting, just as she always had. “How is any of this my doing?!” Sailor Moon demanded, infuriated.

 

“Your stupid Silver Crystal is the reason this keeps happening!” the other girl shouted. “If it didn’t exist – if  _ you _ didn’t exist – our worlds wouldn’t have destroyed each other! We just want it all to stop!”

 

Any argument Sailor Moon might have mustered died. Lethe was right. People kept starting wars for the crystal; she’d seen four already, and knew there would be more, had seen at least two in their possible future. “Then kill me,” she said abruptly. 

 

“…What?”

 

“Kill me,” she repeated. “Take the crystal and crush it. If destroying it stops the war, so be it. I’m not afraid of dying.” She’d chosen death before, in more selfish circumstances. She couldn’t regret its necessity when it meant she wouldn’t have to be alone anymore. 

 

Lethe shook off her confusion like so much water, her expression going from unknowing to severe. Instead of continuing the conversation, she leapt, her staff thrusting surely toward Sailor Moon’s unprotected chest. The blonde just closed her eyes and waited. She was ready. 

 

An echoing clang bounced over the dunes, but no pain came. Surprised, the Moon Senshi looked to find Mnemosyne standing protectively in front of her, blocking her twin with her own rod. After a moment’s grappling, she threw her sister back and held out her weapon in warning. 

 

“Enough, Lethe. Not like this.”

 

“This is what we wanted!” the black-clad warrior protested as she slowly got to her feet. “This is why we joined Galaxia! If we get rid of her, the war will be over, and what happened to our worlds won’t happen to anyone else!”

 

Tired, the slighter girl just shook her head. “Sailor Moon is not the cause. If she was, she would not so gladly die to end it. We have been deceived. You saw into her mind as she forgot. Do you truly believe she is the sort of person to create this level of destruction?”

 

For a moment, Lethe looked young and scared. That moment gave away a truth Sailor Moon doubted she would admit out loud: she didn’t think the Silver Crystal was the problem. She believed, though she wanted to deny it loudly and passionately, that Galaxia lied to them, that  _ Galaxia _ was the guilty one. “I – Mnemosyne… This is what we’ve been fighting for.”

 

“We have been deceived,” she repeated. With a wave of her staff, Sailor Kakyuu was drawn from the great rivers, unmoving but alive. A second gesture sent a trickle of water from the paler river into the soldier’s mouth, and as it passed her lips her eyes fluttered open. “You are unprecedented, Sailor Moon,” the guardian of memory said as the Fireball Princess struggled to orient herself. “We have protected these waters for countless years, and never has one who risked entering emerged under her own power until you.”

 

“What happened?” Kakyuu demanded with a gasp.

 

Mnemosyne waited patiently as Kakyuu caught her breath, and again when a keen of pain tore through the silence. The loss of all three guardians at once, without even a chance to protect them, was almost more than the princess could bear after her other losses. Finally she rallied, dry-eyed and stone-faced. Energy pooled in her hand as she rose, but Sailor Moon stopped her. 

 

Kakyuu hissed. “No?! They killed the only friends I had left! Let me have this!”

 

“Sailor Mnemosyne just saved both of our lives. Revenge isn’t the answer, Kaki-chan.”

 

The rage drained out of her, taking her resolve with it. “Then what is?”

 

“I can help,” Mnemosyne said finally. “There are things you need to see. Come.”

 

The pink-clad Senshi began to return to the rivers. Lethe made no move to follow. The princesses didn’t either. “You can’t expect us to trust you again,” Sailor Moon argued.

 

“I suppose not, but if you want answers, my waters are where you will find them.”

 

The idea of reentering the rivers was terrifying, but the Moon Senshi thought Mnemosyne wouldn’t attack after saving her life. She looked at Kakyuu. “Stay here, Kaki-chan. I’ll see what she wants.” The other girl nodded, so the blonde followed the Senshi of Memory in.

 

Unlike Oblivion, Memory was bright and lively. Countless scenes flashed by, from all walks of life and worlds even she was baffled by. When they reached the center after a near endless silent walk, Mnemosyne stepped up onto a pedestal rising from the riverbed and thrust the butt of her staff into its center. If the water had been alive before, the magical surge as the weapon touched cold marble made it a universe unto itself. 

 

“All recollections of all things gather here. No memory is truly lost, even after countless years, death and rebirth. I know you are hurt by our actions, but this may help you understand.”

 

Sailor Moon blinked, and in that moment she was in a new world. Two girls, clearly the twin guardians, stood together as soldiers marched by. The crowd was solemn and all but silent. She realized no one expected the men to come back alive. Whatever was happening, it was not going well at all.

 

“We were born soldiers of sister planets at war, with family and friends on both sides.” The adult Mnemosyne appeared across from her. “We were young and received no training, no help. In the end, unable to understand our powers, we watched our people tear each other apart.”

 

“Then you should be dead.”

 

She shook her head. “Our worlds survived even as our peoples were wiped out. We two were left alone until Galaxia came.” The vision shifted as she spoke. The Senshi were as Sailor Moon knew them instead of children. “She told us of the Silver Crystal. She promised that we could stop it if we worked together.”

 

The blonde’s next words were a condemnation. “She lied.”

 

Mnemosyne looked away. “Yes. I did not see it until you so bravely offered your life to my sister. Lethe is angry, you know. No one seeks to forget unless they are hurt. She has been given countless terrible memories, and she believed ending the war would put a stop to that as well. She will not be able to tolerate much more of the darkness she is constantly offered.”

 

“And you?”

 

“I give memories. Every time I do, a piece of my emotion goes with it. We are twins, Lethe and I, cursed by the other’s power. She cannot forget, because where can Oblivion send unwanted memories but to herself? I cannot remember what it felt like, because I must give of myself to fulfill my charge. Galaxia’s bracelets, the separation from our crystals, it numbs the pain, but we are spent. Someone else must stop this endless fighting. I think it will be you.”

 

Sailor Moon nodded, unsurprised. Galaxia was too interested in her for anyone else to have a chance, and others had made similar observations. “What can you tell me about her?”

 

“As I said, Memory remembers all that has come before. Let us see what it reveals.” Her staff and the water flashed in unison.

 

A new world appeared. It was poor and weak, worn down to almost nothing. Barren fields were deserted, and the only person in sight was an exhausted young woman. She was too thin, starved and ready to give up. A single bitter tear rolled down her cheek, glowing like the sun. It crystallized into a round blue gem and fell into the girl’s hand as she transformed.

 

Sailor Galaxia looked around like she expected it to change things, but it didn’t do much. The sparse new growth her power had wrought was half weeds, and the few useful crops were already fading. Disgusted, the soldier pivoted sharply and flew away. The white wings, like the intense light, proved how strong she would be. No other Senshi got her wings so soon.

 

The disgruntled guardian abandoned her planet to its decay and wandered the vast galaxy, always looking for one thing. Power. She believed she deserved more than the world and the role she was born to and sought it out. Eventually, she encountered a familiar figure in a dingy tavern.

 

“Wiseman,” Sailor Moon whispered.

 

The cloak and orb were the same, but she sensed life in him. He wasn’t an amorphous evil in the memory, but he was still a magic wielder with dark intentions. He told Galaxia of the Cauldron and its purpose. She quickly realized the crystals growing there could give her what she desired and set out at once to find it. 

 

The vision ended, and Mnemosyne slumped against the pedestal. “I can show no more,” she said between gasps, “but I can tell you of what you seek. All the stolen Sailor Crystals are gathered ahead, in Phi and Chi’s garden. They follow Galaxia and will kill you if they can. Be very careful.” She blew out a heavy breath. A swift current formed as she did and hurled them through the river the way they’d come until both were panting on the bank by Lethe and Kakyuu.

 

“Mnemosyne!” the black-clad Senshi exclaimed. “What did you do?!”

 

“What I had to,” she answered shortly as her sister helped her to her feet. “I gave Sailor Moon a piece of Galaxia’s past. She needs it to be ready for the final battle.”

 

A high, cold laugh interrupted Lethe’s attempted protest. “You know we do not tolerate traitors, so you must have already accepted your fate.”

 

Sailor Mnemosyne straightened and edged in front of her twin. “My sister has done nothing wrong, Chi. I was the one who broke the rules. Your quarrel is with me.”

 

“How true.” The speaker shimmered into visibility. Chi did not wear a tiara, but the collar on her red dress marked her as a Senshi too. Her green hair had a single yellow strand in front, which she toyed with as she descended. “No need to worry, Mnemosyne. I am not here for her.”

 

The guardian of memory’s bracelets broke with a single gesture, and Mnemosyne sank to her knees, rapidly vanishing. Lethe screamed in defiance and anguish. Before Sailor Moon or Kakyuu could stop her, she leapt at the other warrior, ready to kill her to avenge her twin’s death. 

 

“No!” Mnemosyne shouted with the last vestiges of her strength. 

 

Sailor Moon drew the Eternal Tiare, ready to destroy Chi before she could hurt anyone else. She didn’t have a chance. The new warrior just sneered and snapped her fingers, snatching away the bracelets keeping Oblivion alive. Her chilling laugh filled the air again as Lethe wept and dissolved, struggling to hold onto her sister’s last sparks. 

 

88888888

 

More motes of light. The sight would probably appear beautiful to an outsider, but Sailor Moon didn’t think she could stand it again. Of course, who was left? Kakyuu was gone, and poor Chibi Chibi had vanished in the rivers and never reappeared. Losing the gentle Tankei princess shouldn’t have been more terrible than she could have imagined after all the deaths she’d already seen. But oh, it had been.

 

They had found Phi and Chi, only a short run from the drying remnants of Oblivion and Memory. The garden Mnemosyne had spoken of wasn’t the plants they’d wanted to see, though of course they knew it wouldn’t be something so innocent. Instead, towering green crystal spears filled the area with an eerie light. It felt more like a graveyard than a place for growing things. The power pouring from the area had been palpable a mile away, speaking of the agony of fallen Senshi whose souls were trapped in fist-sized gems. 

 

“Welcome, Sailor Moon,” Chi purred. 

 

Kakyuu and Sailor Moon had spun in fear, but it was too late. As they did, Phi fell from above like an avenging angel, if any angel had ever looked as terrible as it did its work. Her staff slid through Kakyuu’s chest like there was nothing blocking its path. The Fireball Princess didn’t even have time to scream. She just died, her crystal wrenched out even as her heart stopped beating. The lights were gone faster than ever before. 

 

With a heartbroken sob, the Moon Senshi drew the Tiare and poured more power than she should have into it, blowing the Star Gardeners into the same nothingness they’d condemned her friend to. The concussive blast also shattered the crystals all around them, and for a brief, shining moment she saw all the stolen Sailor Crystals. Then they were gone, drawn to the golden castle suddenly visible only a few short meters away. Failure so close on the heels of heady success made the loss of Kakyuu a terribly bitter pill indeed. 

 

“Chibi?”

 

The innocent little voice managed to break through her silent grief, and Sailor Moon slowly raised her eyes. She had no idea how long it had been since the latest deaths, how long she had been half collapsed on the crystal-coated dirt, lamenting her losses. Chibi Chibi, still in her Senshi form, put her tiny fists on her hips and frowned in the disapproving way only a small child was capable of. She, at least, seemed unhampered by crippling sorrow.

 

“Up!” she demanded. 

 

“Why?” Sailor Moon asked dully. It seemed truly futile, with her only remaining ally a child she knew nothing about. Maybe before the crystals had been stolen again, she might have been able to muster the energy, might have gathered what was left of her friends to her and let them bolster her, but at that point she didn’t think she had any strength left to give. She was ready to die just to be reunited with the people she loved. Her eyes drifted closed, the weight of her eyelids more than she could hold. 

 

“You are the galaxy’s last hope, Sailor Moon.” The severe words were an unbelievable contrast to the childish voice that spoke them, and the blonde jerked her head up. Despite the seriousness, the girl facing her looked absolutely the same. “If you don’t fight now, Galaxia’s poison will destroy everything. Your friends will never return. Can you ignore that?”

 

“Who are you?!” she gasped. 

 

“That’s not important,” Chibi Chibi said impatiently. “What matters now is the choice you have to make. Are you going to let her take everything from you, or are you going to fight?” She blatantly ignored the nearly translucent paleness of the Moon Senshi’s skin, focusing on the only thing she needed. The fire of her spirit was beginning to blaze in her eyes again. “I know you think you don’t have the energy or the strength, or even the belief, but that’s because you’ve all but given up. Make the decision to fight and the rest will follow.”

 

The blonde slowly dragged herself to her feet. “I can’t make you tell me who you are, but at least answer one question for me. Can I get them back?”

 

“There are ways, yes.”

 

“The girls? Kaki-chan? Fighter? … Mamo-chan?”

 

“Yes, yes. I know it looks bad now, but it can be done. Are you going to fight or not?”

 

“I’d have to go through Uranus and Neptune.”

 

“So do it.”

 

“They’re mine. I can’t hurt them.”

 

“I don’t think they’re going to give you a choice. Your pacifism won’t save you, Sailor Moon. This is a fight the likes of which you’ve never seen. You may find yourself in a kill or be killed situation, and as much as it goes against your nature to hurt a friend, it’s what you’ll have to do if you want to reach Galaxia. Just remember they can be brought back if you find the strength to do what’s required. Think of it as purification, not death.”

 

The mere idea of destroying someone she loved was enough to cause a wave of nausea. She choked it back before squaring with the clearly-not-a-child little girl. “What’s in it for you?”

 

“I’m a Senshi too. I just need all this death to stop.”

 

“Lethe wanted the same thing and she tried to kill me.”

 

Chibi Chibi snorted. “You let me into your home. If I wanted you dead, I wouldn’t need to go to this extreme. What happened to your trust, Sailor Moon?”

 

Try though she might, the Moon Senshi really didn’t have a good response. Eventually, she shook her head and worked up a tiny smile. “At least I’m not totally alone this time. You’ll come with me, won’t you?”

 

“To the gates of hell itself, if that was what it took.”

 

88888888

 

Galaxia’s castle was terrifyingly empty. The echoing silence told them their foes were together, waiting. Shaking off her fear, Sailor Moon reached for the lingering remnants of her ties to Uranus and Neptune and used them as her guide, passing through the palace as quickly as she could. The draw pulled her clear through the building and out, until she saw the Cauldron spread across the horizon. The crystal in her heart sang as it approached its birthplace. 

 

The attack came without warning. Chibi Chibi managed to knock Sailor Moon far enough off balance that it slid past her, the violent yellow energy only a few hairs’ width from her cheek. Neptune’s Deep Submerge, right behind the World Shaking, wasn’t much further when Chibi Chibi clapped her hands and a barrier sprang into existence around them. The blue light flashed to either side, seeking a target it could no longer reach. 

 

“You don’t have to fight me!” Sailor Moon shouted. “It’s not too late!”

 

Instead of the familiar tones of the Outer Senshi, Galaxia’s icy disdain sounded in reply. “Of course it is. Without their Sailor Crystals, they are nothing more than my slaves.”

 

“Why are you doing this?!” the blonde demanded. “You’re already insanely powerful. If you’d just stayed away from Earth, we never would have been a threat!”

 

“A threat?” Galaxia said with a wry laugh. “Is that what you think you are to me? How deliciously naïve. All you are, girl, is more fuel for the fire. You will be consumed like all the others, and my dominance will be assured.”

 

“Then why have you been challenging me? All the taunts, all the promises. Why keep me alive when you could’ve had me weeks ago?” Her defiance returned. She knew she had enough power to be a true challenge, no matter what the golden Senshi claimed. She didn’t know if she could win, but she would fight. Her friends deserved no less.

 

That cold chuckle filled the air, as it had every time Galaxia faced her. “You are terribly transparent. Do you truly think a child like you is a danger to me? I existed before your past self, and I watched even magic fail to save a world in bitter need.”

 

“You watched a world die because you wouldn’t fight for it,” Sailor Moon spat. “You got your powers, and when things weren’t immediately the way you wanted, you abandoned your people because they weren’t good enough.”

 

“The Saffir Crystal and I were more than that wretched planet deserved. I had strength the likes of which had not been seen in generations, even as Senshi go, and all I had was a pitiful heap of rock that could not sustain even the smallest lives. No, I knew there had to be more, and I found it.” Her gesture indicated the Cauldron beyond, vast and unfathomable in ways that were impossible to explain. “This, this is power. This is eternity and control and everything my birth tried to deny me. Why would I stop now?”

 

A thousand disgusted replies begged to be freed, but before the words could form Sailor Moon was on the ground gasping for breath. Uranus, silent and strong as the skies, had struck her in the throat so forcefully that a lesser being would have died at once. Only magic had kept her windpipe from being crushed by the blow. Before she could recover, Neptune dragged her to Galaxia and dropped her in a heap at the older Senshi’s feet. Chibi Chibi shrieked in protest, but Uranus had her arm in a punishing grip, keeping her from helping in whatever way she could. 

 

Unwilling to face death on the floor, Sailor Moon summoned the strength that carried her through so many battles and forced herself up. First she was on hands and knees, quivering with the effort, then just the knees, and then she was toe to toe with her enemy. “I won’t let you have them,” she rasped quietly. “Whatever you do to me, it doesn’t matter. They’re mine, and I’ll always fight to protect the people I love.”

 

“You can say that all you like, but they are no longer the people you loved. They are my slaves, and they will do as I command, because I am the only thing that exists in their world.” She looked to Uranus and Neptune as Uranus tossed the little red-haired girl to the ground much as her partner had done their princess. “Kill them.”

 

The bracers were lifted in silent obedience, and the blonde Senshi steeled herself for the inevitable pain. Part of her begged to close her eyes, to pretend it was anyone else, but the other piece, the one that fought, would not die so ignominiously. Her gaze remained focused, ready for the end, but granted the slight comfort of having two people she loved be the last thing she saw.

 

The energy fired. Three… two… 

 

When they struck, she flinched, but it was the reaction of a mind too slow to comprehend what it saw. The attacks Uranus and Neptune launched had bypassed her entirely, going by on either side to strike their so-called master. It was Galaxia screaming in pain, not her, and they’d tricked her, they’d found a way to win, she’d lose her crystal and –

 

No.

 

Nothing erupted from her chest. There was no crystal, not even one of the pale, fragile things humans carried. She was already empty. Sailor Moon’s eyes rested on the other Senshi’s bracers as a sickening understanding struck. She wore the bracelets because she’d already removed her Star Seed. The Saffir Crystal she’d mentioned was elsewhere. 

 

The screams turned to laughter, high and terrible, the anger of a wounded creature made dangerous by its pain. It was paired with a dark snarl, and a thrown-out hand was quickly filled with four golden bands. The blonde Senshi’s heart leapt into her throat as she spun, already knowing what she would find but dreading it just the same, praying she was wrong. 

 

Uranus was slowly sinking to her knees, trembling, eyes glossy and dark. Neptune did the same, but what little strength she had was expended as she reached for her beloved partner. They slid to the ground at the same time, trying to touch a hand that was just the slightest bit too far. 

 

“This is the first time I have seen such strength in a Senshi,” Galaxia said in a tone so bland one would think she had not just received a terrible shock and betrayed the depths of her raging insanity. “I never thought there would be a person who could resist the control of my bracelets when I gave a direct order. Certainly not two.”

 

“Uranus! Neptune!” It was a heartbroken whisper, hardly what they deserved after so terrible a sacrifice, but she was no less surprised than Galaxia. 

 

“It looks like this is the end,” Neptune said softly. There was no melody in her voice, as there had been in the distant days of peace, the delicate notes of her violin racing through the waves of her precious ocean. Only defeat sounded there.

 

“We no longer have wings to fly free. We dirtied our hands with the blood of betrayal… And now we don’t even have beaks to tear ourselves apart.”

 

Sailor Moon wanted to say their hands would never be dirty, that they’d done something so pure and beautiful it was almost impossible to believe, but her voice lodged in her throat. 

 

Neptune spoke instead. “I know.” Their forms began to fade. “I can endure anything with you, Haruka. Even being burned in the fires of hell.”

 

“Hell? It doesn’t suit you.” There was a wry chuckle, a sound so much like the Uranus of old that it managed to be more dreadful than the loss of Neptune’s music.

 

“I don’t regret it.”

 

“Why?” the distraught Moon Senshi managed to gasp.

 

“It’s our way,” Uranus said gently. 

 

“The cross that was assigned to us as Senshi,” Neptune finished.

 

She wanted to protest, to say she wished they’d told her, even if it was just the smallest of hints, but she couldn’t. It  _ was  _ their way, as it had been even in their earliest meetings. They’d always take the dark path she would never dare walk, and she’d always known they were hers, even when doubts came. She still felt like she’d failed them. The tears she’d thought lost flowed.

 

“Are you… scared, Michiru?”

 

“Haruka… I want… to touch you, Haruka…” The tips of their fingers finally met, a touch so small as to seem meaningless, but loaded with all the words they didn’t say. That little contact gave them the strength to clasp hands, facing their rapidly approaching death as one. Neptune’s eyes drifted closed. “I can see the light…”

 

“You’re warm, Michiru…”

 

Then there was just the terrifying destruction, bits of dying magic filling the air as her last guardians left only the memories behind. 

 

“No…” she whispered, shrugging off Chibi Chibi when the little girl reached for her. It was her knees hitting the ground as Uranus and Neptune had so short a time ago, followed quickly by her hands. “NO!”

 

Great waves of energy danced, reacting to her turbulent emotions. There were no anchors left to tether her to reality. A cyclone of pure silver formed, spinning so quickly that it seemed like a solid wall as her despair filled her. 

 

Galaxia just watched, red eyes glowing with malicious pleasure. This was the moment she had sought, the time when her enemy’s grief and power undid her, opening her up to the darkness that seethed in the Cauldron. It rose in response to the challenging light, finally free of the great sea’s seal, but the blinding silver flashed in warning and it paused. She still clung to the last remnants of strength, and it would have to be quashed before the shadowy entity could act.

 

“Look, Sailor Moon!” Galaxia cried, baiting her. The vortex stilled for a moment as a vast cloud of crystals appeared around them, glittering with the power of countless stars. An exceptionally bright gold one passed her, and her eyes trailed it desperately. “This is what you have sought! All the fallen soldiers you mourn so deeply!”

 

The Moon Senshi realized what she was about to do, and she would swear for years to come that her heart stopped. “No! If you do it… they’ll be gone forever!”

 

A vicious cackle rent the air as the swirling crystals converged – and plunged into the Galaxy Cauldron. Their lights went out at once as their powers flowed, the stones melting away. 

 

“No… NO!!!”

 

No burning silver rose to meet the darkness this time, and it swept toward the vulnerable girl. It swirled around her, growing thicker and more menacing with each heaving sob, each heartbroken tear. Galaxia took a few steps, wanting to watch her vulnerability snuff itself out.

 

“You will not have her.”

 

Like Sailor Moon before her, Sailor Galaxia was stunned by mature words in a childish tone. The little girl that had been by the blonde’s side had been ignored before. Like all others, Galaxia did not believe one so small could be a threat, even if she was a Senshi. In that single moment, she knew she had been wrong. 

 

A light, not unlike Sailor Moon’s, began to pulse around the child as the heart gem in her tiara grew brighter before the gold circlet disappeared altogether. In its place was a many-pointed star sigil etched into her skin. 

 

“The Light of Hope… You?!”

 

Her tiny fingers thrust skyward, and as her arm slashed down the light swept out, racing toward Galaxia before she could even think to defend herself. The force of it drove her to the edge of the Cauldron, and only a tight grasp on a protruding rock spared her the fate she had just condemned the universe’s guardians to.

 

That second was a terrible one. Sailor Moon’s brilliance was ready to be extinguished, while another stood posed to end a war, but at a terrible cost. During that frozen instant, Chaos spoke in an insidious whisper.

 

_ Give me that undying light, the ultimate power. Let your despair consume you, that I may take everything you are.  _

 

“Sailor Moon!” Chibi Chibi screamed. 

 

_ We are all children of the Cauldron, _ it said. _ Even your enemies. They were dark stars, much like those of light you called friends. They were your sisters, your dark mirror, and you killed them. They were pieces of me, searching for a way to be whole. This is your fate, moon child. Light and darkness were one, once, and it is destiny that we will be again.  _

 

“You promised me the power!” Galaxia shrieked over the rising winds. “You swore you were helping me get what rightfully should have been mine!”

 

_ And why should I help you, when you were plotting my destruction as surely as I plotted yours? You thought to merge me with the moon girl so that we might destroy each other, two equal powers negating themselves, leaving you to do as you wished. The power is not meant for the pitiful and weak. Now is the time for Chaos to rise and rule. The days of light are over! _

 

Chibi Chibi tried again. “Sailor Moon, can you hear me?! This is your chance! If you can destroy the Cauldron, it will take Chaos with it! The war will finally be over!”

 

Huddled in the dark, Sailor Moon repeated the word dully. “Over…” If she could just do this one task, there would be no more fighting. It took a long time for the implications to seep into her besieged mind. The Galaxy Cauldron was the birthplace of all things. The destruction of the Cauldron would mean that no new lights would ever be born. “Chibiusa…”

 

The penetrating evil broke when the realization struck like Jupiter’s lightning. If she did as Chibi Chibi asked, destroyed the Cauldron and Chaos with it, she would never have her daughter, a child she already knew and loved. Even at the end of all things, alone and lost, she couldn’t sacrifice that chance. Galaxia’s grip failed and she melted into the Cauldron as Sailor Moon broke Chaos’s seeking tendrils, but the Moon Senshi’s focus was elsewhere. 

 

“This isn’t the right way!” Sailor Moon shouted to Chibi Chibi. “We can’t destroy the source of everything to stop one enemy!”

 

“You have to believe me!” the child screamed. “If you can’t do this, it will never end!”

 

The blonde shook her head. Her words, when they came, were little more than a whisper into eternity. “There’s always another way.” 

 

With a deep breath, she ran past the protesting little girl and leapt into the Cauldron to unleash her blinding light.

 

88888888

 

Instead of dissolving into nothingness as she’d expected, or sinking through the foreign waters of the Cauldron, Sailor Moon found herself crashing into a white marble floor.   
  
“Ow!” she cried, rolling to the side and rubbing her nose. It wasn’t bleeding, so she had to assume it hadn’t broken on impact. It hurt, but after everything she’d gone through, there wasn’t an inch on her that didn’t. She rather thought she’d be all over bruises if she were human.

 

She brushed nonexistent dirt from her tiered skirts as she got to her feet and turned in a slow circle, trying to understand what had happened. She knew she’d made the leap, and while she’d heard Chibi Chibi shouting at her to stop, they had been too far apart for her to interfere. Besides, if she had, there would still be no reason for her to suddenly find herself in a room that – she noticed in shock – was eerily familiar. She’d seen it before, on two separate occasions. 

 

Sailor Moon looked around wildly, half expecting to find Saturn. Instead, a woman all in white shimmered into view. Her hair, the same luminescent shade as her uniform, was dressed in heart-shaped buns and long pigtails. There were some gold accents in her hair and on her sleeves, and a miniature rainbow graced the front of her skirt. A dark cloak pooled at her feet as though it had just been pushed from her shoulders, a sharp contrast to the light one that floated behind her with the slightest movement.

 

Eyes shooting between the heavy black fabric and the newcomer, Sailor Moon gasped. “You were the woman at the Cauldron! The one in my dreams!”

 

“Yes.” She took a slow step forward, and a staff materialized in her hand, its butt clicking gently on the cool marble. “I was trying to stop my sister before things reached this point.”

 

“Who are you?”

 

“I’m Sailor Cosmos.” After a long pause, their eyes met, blue on identical blue. “I’m you from a far distant future, countless eons from your time.”

 

There was a long silence as Sailor Moon tried to process. “No. What – how would that be possible? I’ve seen my future!”

 

“Yes. You’ll rule as Neo Queen Serenity, guiding the Earth into an unprecedented era of prosperity.” She bit her lip before continuing. “Then you won’t. Evil always returns, and the time will come when my sister shrugs off her shackles and is reborn with her full power.”

 

“I don’t have a sister,” Sailor Moon said weakly. 

 

“It’s a long and complicated tale, one I don’t want to discuss now. You need to destroy the Cauldron, Sailor Moon. It’s the only way to prevent the war to come. If you don’t, Chaos will rise again, and she won’t be so easily defeated as today.”

 

“That wasn’t easy.”

 

“No, it wasn’t, but it will be much harder if you wait. Seal the Cauldron, destroy it, and you won’t have to worry about going through something much worse than this.”

 

“Worse than –” Sailor Moon nearly choked on a bitter laugh. “What’s worse than this?! Everyone I love died!”

 

“And if I told you that bringing them back would just make it happen again, but next time it would be brutal and irreversible?!”

 

The blonde recoiled as if she’d been slapped. “What?”

 

“Years ago, I was the one standing there being asked to destroy the Cauldron, and I said all the things you’re saying, but it doesn’t get better! Yes, there are good times still ahead if you bring everyone back, but it doesn’t last! I had to hold my daughter as she died!”

 

If that didn’t hit like a punch in the gut, Sailor Moon wasn’t sure what would. “Chibiusa died? No. No, I’d protect her.”

 

“I didn’t have a chance,” Cosmos said bitterly. “There was no warning. Sailor Chaos just appeared and killed them all.”

 

She swallowed hard. “All of them? Even… Mamo-chan?”

 

“I lost everyone that day.  _ That  _ is why you have to destroy the Cauldron. You can’t let her return. She’s too powerful, and no matter what I do, it’s never enough. The universe is barely hanging on. It’s so bad that even if I somehow miraculously beat her, there’s nothing left.”

 

“But that can’t be right! We were promised a happy future. We were going to get married and have Chibiusa, and our friends – They had their own families to look forward to! We can’t have gone through all of this for it to happen again!”

 

“It’s terrible, and so unfair, but it’ll still come! There’s no avoiding war, Sailor Moon! She’ll kill them all. Don’t do this to me, to us!”

 

Struggling against the need to cry for a future she hadn’t yet lived, Sailor Moon stared hard at her feet as she took a step back. She had to think about what Cosmos was saying. She tried, throwing herself at the mental wall as though it might cave under her, but as it had at the Cauldron, she remained fixated on one thought. 

 

If she ended the war, that would be it. She’d never get married, hold her daughter, watch the children playing with her friends by her side, nothing. She didn’t care about her crown or Crystal Tokyo; it was the people she couldn’t imagine never seeing again. 

 

“No.” She shook her head. “I won’t do it. Maybe what you’re telling me is true, and all that awful stuff happens, but the fact you’re here proves that I’ll make this choice. You did it, once, so you must know why. Can you really give up all your years with your baby?”

 

“Chibiusa…” Cosmos whispered, resolve wavering. “My precious Small Lady…”

 

“I can’t sacrifice my future, even if things go so terribly wrong. It’s still my life, and I want to live it. The others would say the same thing. We’ve fought before; we can do it again.”

 

“But everything that happens –” Her voice shook and broke. “It’s terrible.”

 

“It’s worth it.” Sailor Moon straightened. “I won’t destroy the Cauldron, and if you could you would have already. I want to go back.”

 

It was Cosmos’ turn to consider in pained silence, but finally she looked up and met Sailor Moon’s eyes. “I think I remember a little better now. It’s been so long since I was brave, I’d almost forgotten. In a way, you’re more Sailor Cosmos like this than I am. I’ve fought for so long, always afraid, that I’d lost sight of what was really important. Thank you, Sailor Moon.”

 

“So… I can go back? We all can?”

 

“I should have enough power in this time for that. Close your eyes.”

 

Between life and death, all Sailor Moon could do was trust her future self. She had to believe the older Senshi wouldn’t destroy the Cauldron somehow, would take her seriously and send them all home.

 

“LAMBDA POWER!”

 

Rainbow brilliance cascaded through the chamber, and then nothing.

 

88888888

 

Sailor Moon woke up in Juuban Park, the sky overhead a crisp midnight blue. She was alone, and for a single heart-stopping moment, she thought she was the only one who’d made it back. She felt her heart breaking all over again. Then the first returnee appeared just a few paces away, startled, distressed, and so alive. It was the best gift magic had ever brought her.

 

The park filled with people at an alarming rate, and Sailor Moon dashed between groups, searching for her friends. As best as she could tell, from what the newcomers were telling her, they were returning in the order that they’d died, so a truly terrible number had been killed for their crystals and latent magical potential before the plane had been hit, killing Mamoru and alerting the Senshi to the coming war. Some of the arrivals were badly wounded, but she wasn’t a healer, so all she could do was hope that Tuxedo Kamen would make an appearance before any of them died for want of medical assistance. 

 

She felt him before she saw him, and the sheer power of their bond rebuilding itself was enough that she thought she was flying. She was off like a shot, blonde pigtails dancing behind her as she made her way unerringly into his arms. For a long time, they clung to each other like they might never let go.

 

“You’re here, you’re alive, oh Selene, I was so scared, I couldn’t find you anywhere and it was awful,” she babbled into the front of his jacket. She thought it would tear if he tried to move away before she released her death-grip.

 

One of his hands wound into her hair as he had a similar thought. The other was pressed to the small of her back, holding her as close as he could, until not even air could pass between them. “I thought you were going to die because of me,” he whispered. “That was the last thing I thought before it happened. I couldn’t bear knowing how much you’d suffer.”

 

Slowly, giving Tuxedo Kamen time to ease up so he didn’t accidentally scalp her, she turned her face up so she could see him. “What even happened?!”

 

“That woman – Galaxia – she pulled the plane into a strange sub-dimension. Basically everyone had already died, except for one or two, so I slipped out and transformed. She said something like my being the master of Earth instead of a Senshi was so disappointing and killed me. I really don’t know anything else.”

 

Someone’s shrieks of pain finally caught Sailor Moon’s attention, and she reluctantly disentangled herself from Tuxedo Kamen. “I nearly forgot; we’ve got a lot of injured civilians. This is going to have to wait.”

 

“I’ll do what I can,” he promised. “Just find Mercury and Zoisite for me so I’ll have some help for any nasty cases.” 

 

Her mind was elsewhere as soon as he mentioned them. Sweet, delicate Mercury had been the next one to die, so she would likely appear at any time. That thought had barely formed when a petite body slammed into her, hugging her just as tightly as she had Tuxedo Kamen. 

 

“Sailor Moon! You did it!”

 

“Mercury!” Seeing her was confirmation Cosmos had done what she’d promised. It wouldn’t just be her and Mamoru; they were all going to be okay. “Oh, gods, you’re alive!”

 

“Where’s Zoisite? And the others?!”

 

“Coming, they’re coming,” the blonde assured her friend through fresh tears. “Everyone is going to be here soon. I thought I’d never see any of you again!”

 

“I always knew you had it in you. But did everyone else die? Were you alone?!”

 

“Not until the end, but Mercury-chan, it was terrible! Oh, I’ve missed you!”

 

Tuxedo Kamen cleared his throat to break them up, but his crooked smile betrayed him. They knew he was just as happy everyone would be reunited as they were. “If you’re feeling ready for it, Mercury, I could probably use some help out here.”

 

“O-of course. People need to be healed. I’ll be right there.” She swiped uselessly at her own tears. “I just need a second, Tuxedo Kamen-sama.”

 

“Oh, wait!” Sailor Moon cried. “Mercury, Mars should be here soon, and she’ll need you! Zoisite said you might be able to help her!”

 

“What’s wrong with Mars?” Mercury demanded.

 

“It’s a really long story, but basically her dad drugged her pretty bad and she went into battle that way. She died saving Zoisite.”

 

“I don’t… think I can fix that, Sailor Moon,” the blue-haired girl protested.

 

“He said you could, since blood is mostly water. Please, won’t you try?”

 

Mercury hesitated, still not sure if it was even possible, but it stopped mattering when she saw Sailor Mars staggering their way, struggling to even stay on her feet. “Mars!”

 

It was immediately clear that the fiery Senshi needed whatever help they could offer, vision-sick and still dazed. Mercury stripped off her gloves and summoned her crystal, hoping the full force of her planetary magic would be enough. Biting her lip in concentration, she drew out the blue glow of her healing ability and ran it up and down Mars’ arms. Each time she did, a bruise spread at the crook of her elbows, near the point the IVs had entered her skin. Already bordering on exhaustion, Mercury made one more pass before using a thin icicle to gently make small incisions in both arms and draw out the drugs. Mars mercifully sank into unconsciousness. 

 

“Is she going to be okay?” Sailor Moon asked worriedly.

 

“Yes, I think so,” Mercury said. Her words were short and clipped, but she was deeply drained by using her powers in such an unfamiliar way. Tuxedo Kamen caught her arm when she lost her balance and helped her sit down more comfortably. 

 

“I’ll do what I can for the wounded,” he said gently. “Rest as long as you need.”

 

“People will be looking for us among the civilians if we’ve been missing,” she observed. “We’ll have to find time to power down and blend into the rest before the government gets here and starts organizing everyone.”

 

“I think they’ll have a hard time making it through the paramedics,” the blonde said, tilting her head toward the swarm of ambulances pulling up. “Someone must have called it in.”

 

Tuxedo Kamen gave her a quick kiss and a smile. “I have to get to work. Go find the others, okay? Make sure everyone is accounted for.”

 

The search for the next returning warrior seemed to take forever, and not without reason. There had been a long stretch after they lost Mercury where the battles had been relatively quiet, so they hadn’t had any deaths for a while. Finally, she stumbled upon Jupiter, and like the others the girls fell into each other’s arms, laughing and crying at once. The moment was dashed when Sailor Moon realized that finding Jupiter meant there would be three more in short order, one of whom had been badly injured. 

 

“Find Jadeite!” she shrieked at her friend before touching her bond to her boyfriend and giving him the same order, adding in a hurry that he’d been severely hurt just before his death. She dashed through the park once more, looking for his bright hair among so many dark. When she almost literally stumbled into him, it took a good deal of self-control to keep from screaming.

 

She’d seen Galaxia’s fake Mars torture him through the window, but it was nothing to what she found. The burns were raw and weeping blood, and some went so deep that the bone was visible beneath the smoky residue. He had already passed out by the time she reached him, likely from the shock, but his body convulsed in pain. 

 

Her mental panic summoned Tuxedo Kamen, and despite the mask anyone could see that he was both horrified and angry. Like Mercury had for Mars, he stripped off his gloves and set both hands to the worst burn, spiraling in hateful lines up his back and over his shoulder, leaving deep grooves in his chest. At his direction, Sailor Moon carefully realigned the broken bones in Jadeite’s arms and legs, holding them in place long enough for his magic to do the rest. 

 

Saturn and Pluto returned without either of them noticing, but the Senshi of Destruction saw the broken body of their friend and came to help without being asked. “The wounds are not enough to kill him,” she assured her worried princess as they labored. Her purple light spread over him like water, facilitating the regrowth of damaged muscles and blood vessels. She moved away a second later, nodding. “He will need a few days to recover his strength, but he will wake up within an hour. Tuxedo Kamen-sama, there are others who need our assistance.”

 

Like his anger, a casual observer would have been able to tell he was unwilling to leave the blond man, but after a moment’s hesitation he stood. “Check on Mercury, if you can. She used a lot of energy to help Sailor Mars.”

 

“Of course,” Saturn agreed before plunging into the crowd. 

 

The masked hero looked at Sailor Moon. “Can you stay with him?”

 

She wanted to find the rest of her girls, but she understood what he was going through and offered a supportive smile. “Sure. Just send the others my direction if you see them, okay?”

 

Someone shouted for help, and he hurried to deal with it. The Moon Senshi was left with nothing to do but to sit by the unconscious Jadeite’s side, hoping for the others. That wish was granted in short order when Kunzite appeared, as worried and out of sorts as she’d ever seen him. Venus was in his arms, just as upset.

 

“Tuxedo Kamen-sama,” the general demanded. “Is he – alive?”

 

“You just missed him; he’s out there somewhere. V-chan, are you okay?!”

 

The other blonde flew forward, throwing her arms around her princess. “I should be the one asking you that. I’m so sorry I left you alone!”

 

“It’s okay! We’re all going to be okay!”

 

Kunzite crouched by his comrade’s side as they embraced. “Will he recover?”

 

“Saturn said he should wake up in an hour,” Sailor Moon reported. 

 

She was absolutely shocked when she was abruptly pulled from Venus’ arms and into his. “Thank you,” he whispered against her hair.

 

Smiling, a little teary-eyed, she patted his back. “I missed you.” They wouldn’t say anything else on the subject; it wasn’t his way. She knew without asking that he was thanking her for more than Jadeite, or even their prince. He meant the war itself, all the lives she’d saved. “Where did you leave Nephrite?”

 

“Jupiter found him right after we got here. I don’t think they’ve bothered to come up for air yet,” Venus said wryly. 

 

A bubble of laughter escaped despite Sailor Moon’s best efforts. The leader of her guard quickly joined in. They’d suffered something beyond endurance, but they pulled through, and the time had come to put the pieces back together. Kunzite hovered over them protectively, but they ignored it in favor of taking in all the things people took for granted when times were good. The moon was out; the ominous darkness that had plagued the city when Sailor Moon left was gone. The other girls drifted over to join them, until all five were in a tearful, laughing huddle.

 

Mars indulged in their shameless joy, but hers quickly faded when she took in Jadeite’s condition. Even after Tuxedo Kamen and Saturn’s hard work, the marks on his skin were slow to disappear, and the pinch of his lips said without words that he was still in pain as the healing progressed. It became so much worse when she realized the nature of his wounds.

 

“My magic did that,” she said slowly.

 

The laughter came to a sudden stop. Sailor Moon reached for her, uncertain, but the fiery Senshi shrugged it off as her anger mounted. “Mars, it wasn’t you.”

 

“Then it wasn’t fire that nearly tore him apart,” she spat. “You can pretty it up all you want, say that this Galaxia character used a puppet that just looked like me, but this is Mars power. I can feel it. Don’t lie to me and say it wasn’t.”

 

“Even if it’s your power, that doesn’t make it your fault,” Jupiter contended. “If it had been my lightning, would you be blaming me?”

 

“No, of course not, but this was personal. She did this to him, used me to do this to him, knowing it was. This is my fault. If he hadn’t lost me, he wouldn’t have gotten hurt like this.”

 

“Hey, now,” he rasped. His eyes were still closed, and in the heat of the moment they hadn’t even realized he was waking up until he spoke. “I knew it wasn’t you, firebrand. You can’t take responsibility for what a maniac did.”

 

“It was cruel! I know it wasn’t my fault, but it’s still my magic that did this to you!”

 

“I went in knowing I’d be hurt. It didn’t matter what sort of power did it.”

 

Her head fell forward, hair falling around her face like a curtain. “Damn it, Jadeite, why? Why would you do something like that?”

 

Jadeite blinked a few times, turning a wan smile her way. “Because I love you, and I couldn’t stand living without you. I knew she’d kill me for it, but it gave us some answers we desperately needed. I won’t regret it, and you shouldn’t either. At least you were the last thing I saw.” He tried to sit up, then spat several foreign curses as his pain amplified tenfold. 

 

Mercury hurriedly slid her arm under his back and helped him down again. “You can’t do that until the wounds finish knitting, or you could open them again. Just stay still.” To be safe, she gave him a quick dose of power. It wasn’t much, but it soothed his pain and let him rest. 

 

“Sailor Moon!”

 

Her head shot up in a hurry. “Maker! Fighter! And Kaki-chan! You’re all right!”

 

The black-haired warrior pulled her into a tight hug. “You did it!”

 

Kakyuu’s uniform was torn in the back, and there was some blood, but it seemed like only part of the injury that had killed her reappeared when she did. Seeing the blonde check, the Fireball Princess smiled. “Healer was able to set me to rights in no time. She is seeing to the other wounded now, along with a few of what I believe are your men.”

 

“I don’t know how long you can stay here,” the Moon Senshi warned. “A lot of civilians saw the Three Lights transform; they’ll be looking for you soon.”

 

“Of course. We will not linger for long, but I needed to tell you the good news.” She beamed. “A number of my people were reborn, thanks to you. They are on Kinmoku, waiting.”

 

The five Senshi were immediately shouting over each other, congratulating them. Sailor Moon pulled all three of the Kinmokuans into their midst, and a group hug, despite Maker’s attempts to extract herself. “I’m so happy for you,” she gushed. “You can go home and rebuild.”

 

“As can you, it seems. Thank you, Sailor Moon. We owe you more than I could say. If you ever have need of us, just say the word and we will assist you in any way possible.”

 

“You don’t have to do that!” she protested.

 

“No, but I will. Now, let us see to all these people! Fighter, Maker, and I can help your law enforcement officers organize. I will see you again before we leave, however.”

 

The three were quickly swallowed by the seething masses of people, but Sailor Moon couldn’t get rid of her huge grin. “We did it. Sweet goddess, we did this! All these people!”

 

“Good job, kitten.”

 

“Uranus! Neptune!” She flung herself into Uranus’ waiting arms and clung. “Oh, I don’t even know what to say!”

 

“I’m sorry we had to keep that from you,” Neptune said calmly.

 

“Who cares?!” the blonde demanded. “Guys, that was unbelievable. I can’t believe you’d go so far for me. I really don’t know how to thank you!”

 

Uranus flinched. “It wasn’t something you should be grateful for.”

 

That was when she realized how much the sky Senshi had agonized over her decision. “No, seriously, Uranus. Thank you. I don’t think I’d be here if you hadn’t done it.”

 

“What?” Jupiter asked.

 

“It doesn’t matter, really. I’m just glad we’re all here.”

 

Mercury studied the slowly organizing crowds before turning back to her comrades. “I think some of us need to change back and join in, so we can be registered as no longer missing. Who all should that be, Sailor Moon?”

 

“Oh, all of you but Uranus and Neptune, I think. I’ll use my crystal to cover Jadeite as he does, since we can’t move him yet. The rest of you should spread out. We three and the Starlights can talk to the press.” She relayed the information to Tuxedo Kamen, who would tell the Shitennou and do the same. 

 

The others nodded their acknowledgement, slipping into the hidden clearing to drop their powered forms and rejoining the crowd, giving their names to the officers in charge. It didn’t take long for Rei’s grandfather and Ami’s mother to appear, pulling the girls so close it was as though they would never let go. Zane’s parents both came for him, leaving him both surprised and profoundly grateful, and Jomei’s mother was in tears when she physically shoved her way over to him and found him covered in still-healing wounds. It took Sailor Moon the better part of ten minutes to convince her he’d be perfectly fine with some rest. Neither of Minako’s parents bothered to appear, but she put on a brave face and left with Keiji. Mamoru called Motoki, so the blond arcade owner brought his car and accompanied him home. The others had no family to call, or at least no one close, so they left in a group, until finally all that was left was the few nominated representatives and the wounded that hadn’t yet been sent to the crowded hospitals. 

 

It took a long time and a good deal of debate for any of the arriving reporters to move to the Senshi, but finally one, a relatively stoic young man from a local news station, did. 

 

“You’re Sailor Moon, right?”

 

She straightened up after she finished wrapping a blanket around one of the remaining victims. “Yes. What do you want to know?”

 

“I think the question on everyone’s mind is what happened here today.”

 

The blonde bit her lip for a second, knowing the eyes of the world were on her, waiting for an explanation. She cast around for one, then decided there was no point in being evasive. “Today we ended a war.”


End file.
